I 



THE LIFE AND ACTS 



OF 



POPE LEO XI 11. 



PRECEDED BY A SKETCH OF 

THE LAST DAYS OF PIUS IX, 



THE ORIGIN AND LAWS 



THE CONCLAVE. 



Compiled and Translated from Authentic Sources. 



EDITED BY 

REV. JOSEPH E. KELLER, S. J. 

President of St. Louis University, St. Louis. 



With the Approbation of His Eminence, the Cardinal, Archbishop of New York. 



ITcfco gork, Cintmnntt, anb ft. f ouis : ' ^■ '^ 

BENZIQKR BROTHERS, 

Printers to the Holy Apostolic See. 

1879. 




jfmprimatur. 

t John, Cardinal McCloskey, 



Archbishop of New York, 



Copyright, 1879, by Benztger Brothers. 



TO 

LEO XIII., 

KING AND PONTIFF, 
CHOSEN BY THE SUPREME PASTOR AS A WORTHY SUCCESSOR TO 

PIUS THE GREAT: 

LUMEN IN CCELO after CRUX BE CRUCE, 

WHOSE brilliant DAWN 
HAS GIVEN PROMISE OF A GLORIOUS DAY, 

THIS BOOK 

IS OFFERED AS A TRIBUTE OF HOMAGE — 
A TOKEN OF FILIAL DEVOTION. 



PREFACE. 



The title-page of this compilation sufficiently indicates its 
nature, and a preface would be superfluous were it not the 
editor's duty to give the public some information in regard to 
the sources from which he has drawn his materials, and the 
manner in which the book has been put together. 

That a book of this kind was needed is evident from the 
very greatness of the names which form our title-page ; but 
that the need is supplied only now, when nearly a year has 
elapsed since the death of Pius IX. and the election of his 
successor, seems to require some explanation. 

Letters from Roman correspondents to newspapers in the 
various countries of the Old and the New Worlds ; pamphlets 
purporting to give correct information on the great events 
which form our subject ; books, large and small, entitled 
" Life of Pius IX." and " Life of Leo XIII." were hurriedly 
poured from the press ; and it was to be expected that mere 
rumors would, in many instances, be stated as facts, and that 
the haste of the writers would betray them into many errors 
and exaggerations. It was, therefore, necessary to wait till 
the fermentation had subsided, and we could obtain a clear 
view of the subject in hand. It was necessary to compare the 
several writings, and to correct or supplement one by another. 

It was necessary, moreover, to combine the various parts 
into something like an homogeneous whole. Then came the 
laborious task of translation from the German, French, and 
Italian originals. All this would be more than sufficient to 
account for the delay ; but it is not all. The manifold and 



Vlll 



PREFACE. 



never-ceasing duties of college life rendered it impossible to 
devote to this work any other time than that of the summer 
vacation, which of itself is not favorable to such a task. 

But the editor knew that he could call to his aid a number 
of willing assistants among the young professors of several 
colleges, who would come together during that season of re- 
pose. And it is to their good-will and to their diligent pens 
that this book owes its existence. The editor, therefore, as in 
duty bound, here places all the merit of this production where 
it justly belongs, and takes no credit to himself beyond what 
is implied in the act of suggesting this manner of relieving 
the sports of vacation by an occasional hour of literary labor. 

In the choice of our materials we have gone to the best 
sources within our reach. The writings of men who were 
present in Rome and well versed in the ceremonial of the Pa- 
pal Court, have been our chief contributors. 

The first part of our volume is taken from a pamphlet in 
German by the Rev. G. Schmid von Griineck, a resident of 
Rome. The second part is from a book by Philippus Laicus, 
a writer of considerable research. The Life of Leo XIII. 
was gathered from several French writers, the chief of whom 
is A. Chaulieu, some of whose statements, however, we have 
deemed it proper to correct and others to amplify, Avith the 
aid of the German Life of Leo XIII., by Dr. A. de Waal, 
rector of the German Campo Santo at Rome. For the acts 
of the new Pope during the first year of his reign, we have 
drawn from the Civilta Cattolica and other foreign and do- 
mestic periodicals of known merit. 

We feel that our work has been done very imperfectly ; 
but the public, now informed of the difficulties under which 
we undertook it, will be lenient in their judgment, and will 
overlook the deficiencies of the style, in consideration of the 
interesting and useful matter which has been gathered for 
their benefit. 

The Editor. 

St, Louis, Mo., Nov. i, 1878. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



Page 

Editor's Preface, 7 

PART I.— PIUS IX. 

SKETCH OF HIS LIFE; HIS LAST DAYS; HIS 
DEATH AND BURIAL. 

Chapter 

I.— Sketch of the Life of Pius IX., 13 

II.— The Last Address of Pius IX., 21 

III. — The Final Sickness, 27 

IV. — The Last Hours 32 

v.— Death of Pius IX., 35 

VI. — The Testimony of Rome 47 

VII.— At the Bier, . , 52 

VIII. — The Translation of the Remains, 60 

IX.— In St. Peters, 66 

X. — The Burial, 77 

XI. — The Obsequies, 86 

XII. — Official Biography of Pius IX., « 99 

XIII. — Crux de Cruce 105 

PART II.— THE PAPAL ELECTION. 

HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE ORIGIN AND LAWS OF 
THE CONCLAVE. 

I. — The Catholic Hierarchy, 123 

II. — The Papal Election: Historical Sketch, . . . 142 

III. — Part First: The Preliminary Steps, 154 

IV. — Part Second : The Conclave, ...... 166 

V. — Part Third : Minor Proceedings connected with the Conclave, 201 

VL — Conclusion, 



PART III.— LIFE OF LEO XIII. 
Chapter I. 

PAGE 

MoNSiGNOR Pecci. Birth at Carpineto — The Pecci Palace — The 
Pecci Family — Education at Viterbo and Rome — His First 
Promotion — Ordination — Delegate to Benevento — War on 
the Banditti — Delegate to Spoleto and Perugia — Consecrated 
Bishop — Nuncio to Brussels — Visits to Germany and Eng- 
land — Appointed Bishop of Perugia — Cardinal in Petto — 
Declared Cardinal by Pius IX — Life and Labors at Perugia 
during 32 Years — Camerlengo of the Church — His Last 
Pastoral Letter, 215 

Chapter II. 

The Election, The Office of Camerlengo on the Death of the 
Pope — The Conclave of 1878 — The First Ballot — The Second 
Ballot — The Third and Last Ballot — The Ceremonies. of Ac- 
ceptance — The Public Proclamation by Cardinal Caterini — 
The Rejoicings at Rome — The First Papal Benediction — 
Leo XIII. and France — The Audiences, .... 238 

Chapter III. 

The Coronation. Retirement and Prayer — The Cortege — The 
Papal Throne — The Pope's Mass — The Tiara — Congratula- 
tions of the Cardinals— The Holy Father's Answer, . . 259 

Chapter IV. 

The First Year of Pontificate. The Difficulties of the Po- 
sition — Leo XIII. Communicates the News, of his Election 
to the Governments — His Brief to the Swiss Confederation — 
Reply of the Swiss Government— Brief to the Emperor of 
Germany — To the Czar — The Answer from the Court of Ber- 
lin — Letter of the Prince Imperial — The Czar's Answer — The 
Hierarchy of Scotland — Address to the Parish Priests of 
Rome and to the Lenten Preachers — The First Consistory — 
Allocution of Leo XIII. — Cardinal's Hat bestowed on Card- 
inal McClpskey — The First Encyclical — Death of Cardinal 
Franchi — Brief of Leo XIIL to Cardinal Nina — Care for 
Higher Ecclesiastical Studies according to the Doctrine of 
St. Thomas— Address on this Subject to the Professors of 
the Roman College — Brief to the Archbishop of Cologne — 
Encyclical of December 28th — Proposed Elevation to the 
Roman Purple of Dr. Newman and Dr. Hergenrother, . 272 



PIUS THE NINTH. 



A SKETCH OF HIS LIFE, HIS LAST DAYS, HIS 
DEATH AND BURIAL. 



PIUS THE NINTH. 



CHAPTER I. 

A SKETCH OF HIS LIFE. 

lUS THE NINTH presents in 
his life a picture so grand, so 
richly set, that he who attempts 
to write his biography is at a 
loss as to what should be made 
most prominent, and what may 
be passed over, without injustice 
to the subject. 

We will once more call briefly 
to mind his life so fraught with 
good works, and, viewing his 
great deeds, try to soothe the 
sorrow caused by his departure 
from this world. 

John Mastai-Ferretti was born 
on the 13th of May, 1792, in a little village in the 
Marches. He was the son of the Count Girolamo 
Mastai and the Countess Solazzi. In 1803, at the 
tender age of eleven, he began his studies in the col- 
lege at Volterra, at that time under the direction of 
the Reverend Father Inghirami. In this institution 
he received the tonsure from the hands of Monsignor 
Incontri, Bishop of Volterra. In 1807 he had an 




14 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

attack of epilepsy, and this was the reason of his 
being declared unht to be received into the Guard of 
Honor instituted by Napoleon I. And to this like- 
wise the rumors that John Maria Mastai had wished 
to enter the Pope's Noble Guard owe their origin. 

These reports, however, are unfounded. For the 
young count had, from his earliest boyhood, resolved 
to consecrate his Hfe to the clerical state. But as his 
sickness stubbornly clung to him, he was permitted 
to carry out his idea only on condition that while cel- 
ebrating mass he would have another priest standing 
by his side. 

On Easter Sunday, 1819, he celebrated his first 
mass in the little church of St. Anne dei Falegnami, the 
church of the Joiners' Guild, situated near the boys' 
orphanage of Tata Giovanni, to which he was to be 
afterwards so closely attached. The restriction to 
which he was bound at his ordination was, a short 
time after, removed by Pius VII., and in fact from 
1818 to 1878 he was ever spared from epileptic at- 
tacks. 

In 1823 the young priest Mastai, together with 
Mgr. Muzi, was sent to Chili in South America to 
investigate and regulate church affairs. Thence he 
soon returned, and in 1825 he was appointed by Leo 
XII. director of the great hospital San Michele, and 
twenty months afterwards Archbishop of Spoleto. 
It would lead us too far to enumerate all the advan- 
tages the diocese of Spoleto enjoyed under his admin- 
istration. Even now, after the lapse of half a century, 
old people speak of their archbishop Mastai with 
an emotion that moves to tears. Let it suffice to 
mention here how, by his singular prudence and the 
force of his eloquence, he subdued four thousand 
insurrectionists who had forced their way into Spo- 



i 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



15 



leto, so that of their own accord they submitted to 
lawful authority. 

In 1832 he was removed by Gregory XVI. to 
Imola, and on the 14th of December, eight years later, 
he was raised to the dignity of cardinal. We will 
pass over the innumerable benefits bestowed by his 
charitable hand during his episcopate ; for the two 
dioceses are living tongues bespeaking his mildness 
and benevolence. 

In the beginning of June, 1846, Cardinal Mastai 
was called to Rome for the election of a successor to 
Gregory XVI. The Conclave began on June 15th, 
and on the evening of the following day Cardinal 
Mastai was unanimously declared pope. The morn- 
ing of the 17th announced to the Catholic world that 
Cardinal Mastai had ascended the papal throne, under 
the name of Pius IX. 

He gave himself, heart and soul, to the high task 
now imposed upon him. Indeed he not only turned 
his attention to the government of the Church of 
Christ, but he wished also to withdraw Italy from 
the abyss into which it was rapidly falling. He ear- 
nestly endeavored to win by mildness those who had 
gone astray under the reign of Gregory XVI. 

Having entered upon office on the i6th of July, 
his first act was to grant an amnesty to all political 
criminals, who in course of time repaid this act of 
mildness with the blackest ingratitude. To promote 
the welfare of Italy, he proposed a union of States ; 
but Piedmont, according to the historian Farini, 
opposed the proposition. To remove every ground 
of complaint advanced by the sects, the implacable 
enemies of absolute monarchy as it had hitherto 
existed in the States of the Church, Pius, ahead of all 
the princes of Italy, gave his provinces a constitution. 



l6 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

He called to the first seat in his ministry the some- 
what liberal-minded but faithful and blameless Pelle- 
grino Rossi, who by reason of his uprightness was 
the terror of the secret societies that were under- 
mining Italy. They plotted his death. Three assas- 
sins were hired. In the night of the 14th of November, 
1848, they dragged a corpse from the hospital St. 




THE CAPITOL. 

Giacomo, and practised on it for the intended murder. 
On the 15th of November, when Rossi was about to 
enter the council of ministers, some one pushed him 
slightly, just as he put his foot on the first step of the 
staircase leading to the ministers' hall. He turned 
round, but at the same moment the deadly steel in- 
flicted the mortal wound. He ascended two more 
steps and fell a corpse. 

We will not rehearse the fearful days when can- 
non were mounted before the Quirinal Palace ; we 
will pass over the assassination of Monsignor Palma, 
at the very side of the Pope, and the other excesses 
which branded this period as one of the bloodiest in 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 1/ 

the annals of Italian history. On the 24th of No- 
vember Pius IX. was besieged in his own palace of 
the Quirinal. He succeeded, however, with the assist- 
ance of the Bavarian minister, Count Spaur, in mak- 
ing his escape from the hands of those to whom but a 
short time before he had given liberty. 

The fugitive received the most cordial reception 
from Ferdinand II., King of Naples. His stay in 
Gaeta lasted until the republic under Mazzini and 
Garibaldi had sufficiently spent its rage ; and on 
the 1 2th of April, 1850, he returned to Rome amid 
the repeated acclamations of the people. He adhered 
to many of the measures he had adopted in 1846. 
And then, during the quiet and happy period from 
1850 to 1859, he turned all the energies of his great 
mind to the welfare of his people and to the ad- 
vancement of religion. In proof of this we may men- 
tion the many memorials, the countless monuments, 
the magnificent institutions, which remind us of the 
munificence of the great pontiff, and also the crown 
of lilies with which he encircled the brow of the au- 
gust Mother of God in declaring her immaculate. 

When in 1859 the war between Italy and France 
broke out, Pius IX. adopted without opposition the 
plan of an Itahan confederacy as proposed by Napo- 
leon III. Sardinia, however, opposed its execution. 
When the best provinces of the Church were lost at 
Castelfidardo, where the noble Pimodan renewed 
the spectacle of Leonidas at Thermopylae, Pius IX. 
paid all his officers, and liquidated the debt that 
weighed heavily upon the States of the Church, with- 
out making an assessment on the subjects of the patri- 
mony of St. Peter or on the provinces of Civita 
Vecchia, Frosinone, and Velletri. He was just en- 
gaged in carrying out one of his grandest designs by 



l8 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

the work of the General Council, when the storming 
of the Porta Pia put an end to its deliberations. In 
virtue of the principle of " accomplished facts," the 
last remnant of royalty was torn from him, and that, 
too, without protest from the Catholic powers. But 
that which in those days suffered a greater defeat 
than the Pope's temporal power, was the justice of 
united Italy. 

But the steadfastness of Pius IX., without ever 
giving way, defied every storm. For no skill in war, 
no bayonets, not even the cannon's dreadful roar, 
ever silenced his No7i possumiis. He persevered in 
the Vatican as a faithful general at his post. With- 
out accepting the Guaranty Laws and the millions of 
dollars offered him by the King of Italy, he supported 
with the money which the faithful of their own ac- 
cord had contributed, as a token of their love for St. 
Peter, not only the great number of officers faithful 
to the last, but also many bishops who had been 
robbed of their income. Many schools, institutions, 
and private families in and out of Rome are indebted 
for a very considerable assistance to the liberality of 
Pius IX. In the Vatican, which he left but once to 
give solemn audience to eight thousand Spanish pil- 
grims, he celebrated his jubilees, days of joy for the 
whole CathoUc world. From the Vatican he pub- 
Hshed his grand encycKcal letters, and there delivered 
the animated allocutions which like the voice of thun- 
der were heard throughout Europe. There he re- 
ceived the pilgrims who came in vast numbers from 
every chme to see Pius IX., to hear his voice, and 
to return to their homes with new hopes animating 
their breasts. And in the Vatican, too, he ended his 
days, and entered, on the 7th of February, 1878, 
into the peace of the Lord. 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



19 



To give light and color to the general outlines 
which we have drawn of the life of the great Pius, we 
feel it our dutv to introduce what was written of him 
bv a Catholic of great erudition, but who now, for 
the empty praises of men, has left the Church he 
once loved so ardentlv and defended so heroically : 
" Whatever can be expected of a loving monarch 
who finds relief only in conferring benefits, that is 
shown forth brilliantly in the life of Pius IX. Per- 
transiit bcnefacicndo. He went about doing good. 
These words, though spoken of a higher One, may be 
truly applied to him. As far as a princely person is 
concerned, it is plainly apparent in him how the 
papacy, even in a worldly state, can, by suitable elec- 
tions, be the most noble of all human institutions. 
Here is one in the full vigor of manhood whose youth 
was spent in innocence, whose episcopal duties were 
conscientiously performed, and who is now raised to 
the highest honors and to princely power. He is a 
strano^er to extravasfance. He has no desire but to 
do good. He has no ambition but to be loved by his 
people. His daily occupations are divided between 
prayer and the work of a ruler ; his recreation is a 
walk in the garden, a visit to some church, prison, 
or benevolent institution. 

Without personal want, free from all earthly ties, 
he has no relatives to advance, no favorites ; all have 
like claim, like access to him. He exercises the rights 
and powers of his office for no other end than to do 
his duty. The sparing and economical management 
of his court affords him ample means for supplying 
the wants of the needy and the suffering. He too, like 
other popes, has buildings erected, not indeed gor- 
geous palaces, but structures of public utility. 
Severely wounded, maltreated, and repaid with in- 



20 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IXo 



gratitude, he has never nourished a thought of re- 
venge, never committed an act of violence, but has 
always forgiven and pardoned. He has not only 
tasted of the cup of sweetness and of bitterness, of the 
cup of the favors and disfavors of men, but has drain- 
ed it to its very dregs ; he has heard the ' hosanna' 
and the ' crucify him. ' The man in whom he placed 
his confidence, the greatest mind of his nation^ fell by 
the dagger ; the ball of a revolutionist pierced his 
friend by his side. No feeling of hatred, no passing 
breath of bitterness, has tarnished the mirror of that 
pure soul. Not led astray by human folly, nor drawn 
by human scheming, he moved on in his course with 
a firm and constant pace like a star in the heavens." 




CHAPTER II. 



THE LAST ADDRESS OF PIUS THE NINTH. 

The 2d of February, 1878, was for the true subjects 
of the holy father what the 17th of January, on 
which day Victor Emmanuel was buried, had been for 
the minions of the invader. Notwithstanding the cor- 
ruption which set in with the storming of the Porta 
Pia, it was plainly apparent, on the feast of Candlemas, 
that love towards Pius IX. could not be torn from 
the hearts of the true Romans. 

The 2d of February was the seventy-fifth anni- 
versary of the holy father's first communion. 
Even at early dawn all the churches of Rome were 
crowded by the faithful, from the rank of the poor 
carter up to that of the Roman patrician, all offering 
up their holy communion for the preservation of 
Pius IX. The Roman youths met at the Gesu (church 
of the Jesuits). Here his Eminence the Cardinal- 
Vicar, Monaco la Valetta, distributed holy com- 
munion without interruption from early morning till 
ten o'clock. The faithful Romans returned from the 
altar, their eyes glistening with tears of emotion, their 
hearts bounding with courage to fight the battles of 
God and his Church. 

On the same day the holy father received at the 



22 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



Vatican the representatives of the chapters, the gen- 
erals of the different orders, the pastors of Rome, and 
the rectors of the ecclesiastical institutions. This 
being the first public audience since November, 
many dignitaries of the Church from far and near 
were present, viz., Monsignor Perraud, Bishop of 




CARDINAL MONACO LA VALETTA. 



Autun in France, Mgr. EUoy, Vicar ApostoHc of 
Oceanica, Mgr. Clifford, Bishop of Chfton, England, 
Mgr. Strain and Mgr. Eyre, apostoHc delegates for 
Edinburgh and Glasgow, Mgr. Sallua, Commissary 
of the Holy Office, and others. 

Towards one o'clock, the holy father, accom- 
panied by the court, was carried in his chair to the 
audience chamber. Kindly receiving the blessed 



A SKETCII OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



23 



candles, which according to custom were presented 
on that dav, he addressed those present in an earnest 
and sonorous voice as follows : 

" It affords me unwonted consolation, dear chil- 
dren, to see you on this day assembled here about 
me. I thank you for the noble energy which you 
have ever manifested for the protection and salvation 
of souls entrusted to your charge. I thank the pastors 
who are leaving nothing undone to urge on the faith- 
ful perseverance in prayer and in the frequent recep- 
tion of holy communion. 

" Mv thanks also to all the pastors, both secular 
and regular, for the manv prayers which bv their 
counsel, and under their direction, the faithful have 
unceasing!}' offered up for me. I request vou to 
thank in mv name all under vour care for these kind 
offices. Thank them, and tell them that I prav to 
God that he mav shower down upon them three 
graces : perseverance in praver and in the reception of 
the holy sacraments, and an unshaken fidelitv towards 
the head of the Church. Tell them that I remember 
them, and beseech God to preserve them graciously 
under the kindlv hand of his providence. I am not 
ignorant of the fact that in the different parishes there 
are some so ill instructed as not to be acquainted with 
the necessarv truths of our holy religion. I know, 
too, that there are parents who have incurred fearful 
responsibilities for having brought up their children 
in religious ignorance. But, on the other hand, I 
know that we must go in search of sinners to cor- 
rect them, and follow the ignorant to instruct them. 

" Go then, seek out the ignorant, instruct them 
with all fervor, that it may no longer be said that in 
the centre of the Catholic world there are souls un- 
acquainted with the principal mysteries of our holy 



24 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



religion. Exert all your energy to take away this 
stain from Rome ; cease not until, by your efforts 
and your prayers, souls be converted and the truth 
shine forth brilliantly everywhere in the holy city. 

" 'And I trust that he who hath begun a good 
work in you will perfect it unto the day of Christ 
Jesus.' (PhiHp. i : 6.) 

This is what I wish to exhort you to on this oc- 
casion, my extreme weakness not allowing me to say 
more. 

" And now I give you all my blessing. I bless 
you, your institutions, and all the souls committed 
to your care. May this blessing accompany you 
through your whole life, and be the object of your 
prayer, and the key-note of your songs of praise, 
when God will call you away to your heavenly 
country ! 

May the blessing of Almighty God, the Father, 
the Son, and the Holy Ghost, descend upon you and 
remain vv^ith you forever ! ' ' 

This is the last address of Pius IX., not a compo- 
sition of artistic words and high-sounding phrases, 
but the language of truth, which, as Cicero says, can 
defend itself. 

This is the last will of Pius IX. to the society of 
the nineteenth century. The dangerous disease with 
which it is infected first manifested itself when Lu- 
ther unfurled the standard of rebellion in matters of 
religion. Its symptoms became more alarming at 
the outbreak of the revolution in philosophy, for 
which Descartes gave the watchword, and came to a 
crisis in the social revolution of 1789. For a whole 
century the symptoms of this disease have been care- 
fully studied. The world outside of the Church has 
administered various remedies, but humanity lies 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



25 



prostrate as sick as ever. And no change for the 
better will be effected until the Church obtains the 
free exercise of all her powers and undisputed sway 
in what belongs to religion, and until the family is 
again animated by the spirit of a Christian training 
in which precept and practice are considered of equal 
importance. These are the means which Pius IX. in 
his last speech proposed for the regeneration of mod- 
ern society, and they are the only efficacious ones : 
prayer for the conversion of those who have gone 
astray, diligence and ability for instructing and form- 
ing the minds of the ignorant, and a practically Chris- 
tian education of youth given by father and mother. 

This is the will of Pius IX. to all the Catholics on 
the face of the world. And we, as faithful sons of the 
great Pius, cannot show our fidelity and reverence 
better than by earnestly endeavoring to execute with 
conscientious exactitude this his last will. It is need- 
less to ask what good will be obtained by it, and 
when and where the results will show themselves. 
We do not respect the effects so much, nor do we 
judge by them alone. The standard for judging the 
work of a man is the greatness and the purity of his 
intentions, and his conscientiousness in the fulfilment 
of duty. Thus history has thrown open the portals 
of the hall of fame to Leonidas, who fought without 
success in the very shade made by the Persian ar- 
rows, and branded with ignominy the noble Ephialtes, 
who successfully betrayed the Spartans. Let us do 
our duty, and God will take care of the rest. The last 
words of Pius IX. were : I place my trust not in 
men nor in princes, nor in fleets nor in armies, but 
in Him who, when he has begun the work, knows 
how to perfect it." 

In Pius IX. we have lost a great pilot, but the 



26 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



helm of the bark of Peter is still steady. Another has 
taken it, and will direct it with a strong arm to the 
day of Jesus Christ, when a just Judge will take away 
the diadem from the brow of him who was successful 
on earth, to adorn him who, though he met with no 
success, stood up for the cause of right and truth. 



CHAPTER III. 



THE FINAL SICKNESS. 

The words of our blessed Redeemer were to be 
applied to his representative upon earth : ' ' Ye know 
not the day nor the hour." Pius IX. was always 
ready for death ; his life, so pure, so holy, was one 
unbroken preparation for death. 

But to the faithful, to his children, the death of 
Pius IX. came like a flash of lightning from the clear 
sky, like a thief in the night. They had a well- 
founded hope that the holy father would be pre- 
served to the Church and her love for at least one 
more year. For he had safely passed through the 
winter, and revigorating spring had already set in. 

When in the spring of the previous year pilgrims 
from all parts of the globe went to Rome, spending 
many instructive and at once pleasant evenings in the 
Palazzo Altemps, seeing the holy father in the Sala 
Ducale or in the Hall of the Consistory, hearing his 
strong and sonorous voice, and receiving his blessing 
— no one suspected that they were the last great 
band of pilgrims whom Pius IX. was to bless. No 
sooner had the pious travellers returned to their 
homes than a strong desire awakened within them to 
return once more to the gray-haired pontiff, and to 



28 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



give public testimony of their love for him to the 
whole world. 

But Divine Providence, whose ways are not the 
Avays of men, had determined otherwise. Even at 
the time when the holy father gave those imposing 
audiences his feet refused to render service, although 
in other respects he was in excellent health. This 
condition continued during the great heat of summer, 
which always had a wholesome effect upon him. From 
the end of November till Christmas he lost in bodily 
strength, while his mental faculties continued in full 
vigor despite the burden of old age. 

At the opening of the new 3'ear, the health of the 
holy father seemed to undergo a change for the 
better. To the joy of all who had the good fortune 
to see him, his vital power seemed to increase day by 
day. The wound, which in the beginning of his sick- 
ness had closed, now assumed its unalarming aspect, 
and his health was Avholly satisfactor}'. He rose 
from his bed, to which he had been confined for many 
weeks. To go to his private library he no longer 
made use of his movable bed which had been 
sent to him as a Christmas present by a lady of 
Paris, through Cardinal de Falloux, but of the sedan- 
chair in which, a summer before, he allowed himself 
to be carried into the Loggia of the court of St. 
Damaso, or into the Hall of the Consistory, to give 
audience to the faithful Romans and to the pilgrims 
from far and near. 

It was about the middle of Januar}' when a 
Roman paper, edited by a Jew, published the sensa- 
tional report that the Pope had died. This paper, 
which the holy father usually read, came within his 
reach. He read the notice of his own death, smiled, 
and said, ' ' If that had been written about m}' feet, it 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



29 



would not be altogether wrong ; but of my head it can- 
not as yet be said." 

The famous Professor Ceccarelli, the Pope's phy- 
sician in ordinary, had hopes even of gradually curing 
the trouble in his feet. And truly the realization of 
these hopes seemed to draw nearer when on Candle- 
mas-day the holy father was able to give audience, 
and when on the 3d of February he succeeded, with 
the support of two domestic prelates, in taking a few 
steps. Great was the astonishment of the bystanders, 
and greater still their joy at the happy result of the 
attempt ; for many of them had abandoned all hope 
of his ever again obtaining the use of his feet. The 
holy father, too, was overjoyed at this unlooked-for 
result. " And now," he said, raising his eyes to 
heaven, " now I pray God for one thing more : that 
in his infinite generosity he would grant me strength 
enough to fall down on my knees to thank him." 

On the same day he received in his private li- 
brary, adjoining his sitting-room, some few represen- 
tatives, several cardinals and prelates. The same 
happened on Monday and Tuesday, when many per- 
sons of high rank congratulated him on his recovery. 
On Wednesday, too, he continued to give audiences, 
although the first symptoms of a relapse began to 
show themselves. On Wednesday evening he took a 
frugal supper as usual, and, according to his physi- 
cian's advice, he went to his night's rest at an hour 
somewhat earlier than he had been accustomed to 
when he enjoyed good health. 

The room in which Pius IX. exchanged the tem- 
poral for the eternal is the one in which he had lived 
since 1870. It is small and of rectangular form. 
Everything in it is most simple. The tapestry and 
carpets, as also the furniture, show anything but luxury 



30 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

and splendor. Near the wall stand two beds, which 
the holy father used alternately. In the middle of 
the room is a writing-table of dark wood, which has 
much the appearance of a piano. On it lay a few ob- 
jects of devotion. On the wall near the bed are 
hung two little oil-paintings, one of them representing 
St. Joseph, the other a madonna, which he had 
brought with him from his native city, Sinigaglia, 
and to which he had a special devotion. 

At ten o'clock in the evening. Professor Cecca- 
relli, to whom the precious health of the holy father 
was entrusted, paid him a visit. He found nothing 
in the pontiff's condition that might cause anxiet}'. 
His pulse, however, Avas somewhat slower and 
more feeble ; but to this he attached no importance. 
The Pope, it is true, was a little exhausted, but, as 
ever, he received and dismissed his phj-sician in a 
cheerful manner. After a few hours of restless sleep 
he awoke with a fever. He called his chamberlain, 
who slept in an adjoining apartment, and complained 
of a heavy pressure on the chest and of great ex- 
haustion. The attendant sent in haste for Doctor 
Ceccarelli, who came and found the holy father in a 
chill and in danger of a stroke of apoplexy. His 
Holiness could speak but with great effort ; the beating 
of his pulse was faint and so rapid that it could 
hardly be counted ; the breathing was laborious. 
The wound on his foot had healed up. The few 
words which the Pope uttered showed that he had 
fallen into a slight delirium. 

A few moments later, the doctors Valentini and 
Antonini and a few domestic prelates of his Holiness 
made their appearance in the sleeping-apartment. 
Gradually the Pope came again to the full use of his 
genses ; he cast a glance about him, recognized the 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



31 



prelates, and attempted to say something, but the 
asthma rendered his effort vain. At two o'clock the 
fever increased ; the Pope fell into a gentle slumber, 
which seemed to strengthen him somewhat. Many 
of the courtiers knelt at his bedside, sending fervent 
prayers to God to preserve their beloved father. 

At three o'clock they brought to the sick pontiff 
a little refreshment, which for some time seemed to 
give him new life. Two hours later critical symptoms 
manifested themselves ; the pulsation became rapid 
and the breathing laborious, to the griel and alarm of 
those who were present. 



CHAPTER IV. 



THE LAST HOURS OF PIUS THE NINTH. 

On the morning of the 7th of February, when the 
sun ht up the sick-room of the holy father, the silver- 
haired sufferer knew that on the next day not the 
sun of time but that of eternity would rise for him. 

At half -past six o'clock a violent fever again seized 
him, lasting but for a short time, and not as long as 
on the previous occasion. The lethargy into Avhich 
he had fallen during the last hours of the night had 
entirely disappeared and given place to a full con- 
sciousness. The pulse was rapid and faint ; the bron- 
chial tubes were impeded ; his condition became at 
every moment more critical. 

Those who knelt at his bedside prayed with sobs 
and tears, and clung to the last ray of hope ; their 
hearts so devotedly attached to Pius IX. could not 
harbor the thought of the possibility of losing him. 

The holy father, however, to whom, together with 
a clear consciousness, was given the use of his speech, 
felt that his last day had dawned, and that Avhen night 
would come over the Eternal City he would be able 
to sa}^ with the Apostle of nations, I have finished 
my career." This he clearly expressed in a manner 
free from all ambiguity, When Cardinal de Falloux 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



33 



inquired about the state of his health, and endeav- 
ored to inspire him with hopes of recovery, the 
sufferer repHed : " Questa volta bisogna andarsene" 
(This time I must go). 

He asked at once for his confessor, Monsignor 
MarineUi, pastor of the papal palace, made his con- 
fession, and requested that the sacraments for the 
dying should be administered to him. At half-past 
eight o'clock Mgr. Marinelli brought him the Holy 
Viaticum. What an auspicious moment ! The dying 
saint once more gathered all his strength, raised 
himself up as he was wont during his former sick- 
ness, said the usual prayers himself, and received the 
Body of our Lord with such devotion and such fervor 
that he seemed more an angel than a man. The in- 
visible and the visible heads of the Church for the 
last time embraced one another here below. 

He fell back on his pillow ; a sweet seraphic smile 
played about his lips, a celestial brightness lit up his 
countenance. He prayed ; prayed for himself and for 
his Church : for himself for strength and vigor against 
the powers of darkness, that in the last moments he 
might not succumb to those against Avhom he had 
stood like a hero during his whole life ; for his 
Church that she might be firm in her trials, and that 
she might be enabled to serve God in peace and lib- 
erty. 

At nine o'clock Mgr. Marinelli administered to 
him Extreme Unction. The holy father had the 
full use of his senses. The beating of his pulse now 
became weaker at every moment, and at eleven 
o'clock it was no longer noticeable in the right arm. 

Meanwhile the Cardinal- Vicar, Monaco la Val- 
etta, had given orders to all the parish churches in 
Rome to expose the Blessed Sacrament? and to offer 



34 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



up prayers for the preservation of the beloved head 
of the Church. 

All Rome repaired to the churches and to the 
Vatican. But God left the prayers unheard ; for 
in the decrees of infinite wisdom, the life of Pius IX. 
had come to a close. The silver-haired Pius was ripe 
for the harvest, for the croAvn of the confessor and 
the palm of the martyr. 

His last lingering hours upon earth were wholly 
absorbed in God. He uttered but few words, and 
not Avithout great pain, ■ pausing frequently. They 
formed his last religious exercises, so highly edifying 
not only on account of the great exertion with which 
they Avere spoken, but especially because of the great 
and unshaken confidence in God by which they 
were dictated. He to Avhom it was given to hear his 
last words could but take them as flames ascending 
from the heart of a saint — all resignation, all pa- 
tience, all deeply-rooted piety, to the very last. 

The last hour was at hand. The remedies which 
had been administered to rouse nature had but mo- 
mentary effects ; the skill of the physicians could no 
longer stay the disease in its course. A paraWsis of 
the lungs now threatened the life of the august 
sufferer. Towards eleven o'clock, the pulse in the 
left hand died away ; the hands and feet turned cold. 
At half-past eleven he cast a long and loving 
glance at those kneehng in the apartment, as if he 
would bid them a last farewell. Then he took his 
crucifix from under his pillow, blessed all, and hold- 
ing the image of the Saviour in his hand, he sank 
back. 



CHAPTER V. 



DEATH OF PIUS THE NINTH. 

About twelve o'clock, the medical attendants of 
his Holiness declared that his breathing had become 
abnormal. The hands were swollen with blood, and 
his feet were cold and motionless. The eventful 
moment which like a double-edged sword pierced the 
hearts of nearly three hundred millions of Catholics 
was rapidly approaching. His Eminence Cardinal 
Bilio, who in his capacity of Grand Penitentiary of St. 
Peter's had the privilege of reciting the prayers over 
the dying pontiff, began the recommendation of the 
noble soul of Pius into the hands of its Creator. The 
holy father, whose strength was fast ebbing away, 
answered, and with difficulty succeeded in repeating 
distinctly the words, Col vestro santo ajuto" (With 
thy holy help), which occur in the act of contrition. 

Whilst Cardinal Bilio interrupted for a moment 
the recitation of the prayers, the holy father said, 
with an expression in which the whole of his great 
soul seemed to be concentrated : " In domum Domini 
ibimus" (We shall go into the house of the Lord), 
which was verified a few moments later. 

The Grand Penitentiary then continued, amid the 
loud sobs and weeping of the bystanders, the touching. 



36 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



prayers of the Church. When he came to the prayer 
which begins with the words " Proficiscere, anima 
Christiana" (Depart, Christian soul), he paused and 
cast an inquiring look towards the holy father, who 
then spoke for the last time and said, " Si, proficis- 




CARDINAL BILIO. 



cere" (Yes, depart), by which he wished to indicate 
his desire of having also this last prayer recited over 
him. The cardinal then pronounced, in a voice which 
plainly betrayed the deep emotion of his heart, the 
"Proficiscere," by means of which the Church de- 
livers into the merciful hands of God the soul stand- 
ing on the brink of eternity, and which is at the same 
time a recommendation of the Church militant to the 
Church triumphant. The solemnity and impressive- 
ness of this moment beggars all description. The 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



39 



angels themselves, were they to attempt it, could but 
say in angelic accents, " Pius IX. is dying." It was 
now three o'clock in the afternoon. Cardinal Bilio and 
Mgr. Marinelli remained constantly at the bedside of 
the holy father, suggesting pious ejaculatory prayers. 
Once more he lifted his consecrated hands in bene- 
diction over the bystanders. It was the last blessing 
of Pius IX. 

About four o'clock the agony began ; a thick 
clammy perspiration covered the brow of his Holiness, 
and a rapidly increasing rattle announced in unmis- 
takable language that the end was near at hand. The 
death-chamber now presented a most harrowing 
spectacle. 

At five o'clock the attending physician, Professor 
Ceccarelli, called upon Cardinal Bilio to recite once 
more the prayer " Proficiscere" over the dying 
pontiff. Pius IX. was expiring. A few moments 
after the recitation of this prayer, the Grand Peniten- 
tiary began to recite on bended knees the sorrowful 
mysteries of the rosary, to which the attendants 
answered with sobs and weeping. The eyes of the 
holy father, which can never be forgotten by those 
whose happiness it has been to behold them, on 
account of the indescribable mildness which beamed 
from them, were raised towards heaven, and re- 
mained fixed as if in ecstasy till the shadows of death 
clouded their earthly vision forever. 

When they had reached the fourth mystery, the 
rattle ceased, and the last clear pearly tear appeared 
in the eye of the venerable father. Pius IX. had run 
his course ; he had finished the battle, and exchanged 
this vale of tears for the happy abode of the heavenly 
Jerusalem. It was 5.40 in the afternoon, and the Ave 
Maria rang in silvery peals from the dome of St. 



40 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



Peter's. Whilst the faithful on earth saluted at the close 
of day the virgin spouse of the Holy Spirit, the angels 
in heaven imprinted upon the brow of the great 
Pius the kiss of glad welcome. After a struggle 
of more than half a century, he departed this life 
like the sun which just then greeted the cross of St, 
Peter's with his last golden beams. He disappeared 
from the sight of men with that serenity of soul, that 
peace and amiability, characteristic of favored souls, 
in full consciousness of the important step he was 
about to take, and with a heart full of the love of 
God, and as resigned as if there were but a step be- 
tween heaven and earth. 

Pius IX. was no more. But his death could not 
be realized by those who had seen him dying. All 
seemed like a dream. When, however. Cardinal 
Bilio, in low and mournful accents, intoned the 
" Requiem seternam dona ei Domine, " etc., the whole 
weight of grief which till then had almost crushed 
the hearts of the bystanders was made manifest in 
all its intensity. The more fondly they had clung to 
hope, the more bitter proved their disappointment. 
They covered their faces with their hands and wept 
bitterly. In the antechamber of the papal palace the 
representatives of the foreign powers accredited to 
the Holy See, many prelates and the foremost of the 
Roman nobility, and others who had access to the 
papal court, had gradually gathered. Here knelt, 
side by side, ambassadors and servants, cardinals and 
simple citizens, Roman princes and Scopatori Secreti, 
without distinction of rank or title. Love and sor- 
row ignore ceremonies ; they are the language of the 
heart. Mgr. Chfford, Bishop of Clifton in England, 
recited the rosary, to which the bystanders answered 
with deep emotion. The door which led to the 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



41 



private chamber of the holy father now opened. A 
private chamberlain of his Holiness stepped forward 
and breathed with faltering voice over the assembled 
multitude the words, " II papa e morto" (The 
Pope is dead). 

This announcement had an effect similar to a 
spark of fire cast into a mine. The tears hoarded up 




CARDINAL AMAT. 



during many a long hour now burst forth with the 
impetuosity of a torrent ; none could resist them. 
Some sprang to their feet and ran hither and thither 
as if their hearts would break ; others remained stand- 
ing as if petrified, while others again rushed into the 
death-chamber in order to cover the cold hands of 
the holy father with kisses. 

Pius had ceased to live. The ambassadors left 



42 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



the Vatican ; the Camerlengo, Cardinal Pecci, Bishop 
of Perugia, entered upon his office of temporal ruler 
during the vacancy, while the oldest of the cardinal- 
bishops, Amat, the oldest cardinal-priest, Schwarzen- 
berg (in his absence, Asquini), and the oldest cardi- 
nal-deacon, Caterini, divided among themselves the 
spiritual government of the Church. 

The announcement of the Pope's death was com- 
municated to all foreign cardinals and nuncios, as 
also to his relatives, by telegraph from the office of 
the Vatican. His Eminence the Cardinal- Vicar 
ordered that the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, 
before which the faithful of Rome were still kneeling 
in supplication, should cease. 

At six o'clock, the physicians who had had 
the privilege of assisting the holy father during his 
sickness approached the bed of the dead pontiff, and 
testified to his decease by the following document : 

" We, the undersigned, certify that his Holiness, 
our holy father. Pope Pius IX., for a long time 
affected with a lingering bronchitis, died of pul- 
monary paralysis this /th day of February, 1878, 
at 5.40 P.M. 

Doctor Antonini, Physician. 

Ceccarelli, Surgeon. 
Petacci, Assistant. 
TOPAI, Assistant." 

A few moments later, the body of the deceased 
pontiff was conveyed to a larger apartment that had 
a northern exposure, where it was given in charge 
of the Noble Guards. Meanwhile the penitentiaries 
of St. Peter's chanted the office of the dead in the ad- 
joining rooms. 

On the same evening the Cardinal- Vicar an- 



CARDINAL SCHWARZENBERG. Page 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



45 



nounced the death of Pius IX. in the following cir- 
cular : 

" To the Clergy and People of Rome : 

''Raphael, of the title of Santa Croce in Gerusa- 
lemme, Cardinal-Priest of the Holy Roman Church, 
Monaco la Valetta, Vicar-General, Judge Ordinary 
of Rome and its district, and Abbot Commendatory of 
Subiaco. The majesty of the omnipotent God has 
recalled to himself the sovereign pontiff Pius IX., of 
blessed memory, according to the sad news just im- 
parted to us by the most eminent Camerlengo of the 
Holy Roman Church, to whom it belongs to make 
known to the public the death of the Roman pontiffs. 
At such an announcement, the Catholic people in every 
part of the Avorld, devoted to the great and apostolic 
virtues of the immortal pontiff and his sovereign 
magnanimity, will weep. But, above all, are we 
most supremely sorrowful ; we, O Romans ! since to- 
day has unhappily terminated the most extraordinary 
and glorious pontificate which God has ever conceded 
to his vicars upon earth. 

'' His life as pontiff and as sovereign was a series 
of widespread benefits as well in the spiritual as in 
the temporal order, diffused over all the churches 
and nations, and in a most particular manner upon 
his Rome, where at every step monuments of the 
munificence of the lamented pontiff and father are 
met with. 

In accordance with the sacred canons, in all the 
cities and important places solemn obsequies and 
suffrages for the soul of the departed pontiff should 
be made until the Holy Apostolic See be provided 
with a new head, and prayers should be made to the 
Divine Majesty for the speedy election of a successor 



46 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

to the deceased, whom we can never sufficiently 
lament. 

For this purpose — 
" (i) It is made known that the public and solemn 
funeral will be celebrated by the canons of the Patri- 
archal Basilica of the Vatican, to Avhich the body of 
the immortal pontiff will be brought and placed, as is 
customary, in the Chapel of the Most Holy Sacra- 
ment. 

" (2) It is ordered that in all the churches of this 
holy city, the clergy, secular as well as regular, 
whatever be their privileges, shall toll all the bells for 
the space of one hour, from three to four in the after- 
noon of to-morrow (Friday). 

(3) As soon as the precious remains of the sov- 
ereign pontiff are brought into the Vatican basilica, 
the solemn obsequies will be celebrated in all the 
churches already mentioned. 

(4) The reverend clergy, secular as Avell as regu- 
lar, are exhorted to offer the unbloody sacrifice in 
suffrage for the soul of the august departed, and the 
religious communities of both sexes, as well as the 
faithful, are invited to recommend his blessed soul in 
their prayers. 

''(5) Finally, it is prescribed that in each of the 
churches mentioned, in the mass and other functions, 
there be added the collect Pro Pontifice eligendo as 
long as the vacancy of the Apostolic See shall con- 
tinue. 

Given from our residence, the 7th of February, 

1878. 

R. Card. Monaco, Vicar. 
Placido Can. Petacci, Secretary.'* 



CHAPTER VI 



THE TESTIMONY OF ROME. 

When on September 20th, 1870, the BersagUeri 
had entered Rome through the breach of the Porta 
Pia ; when Rome, after a short but heroic resistance, 
had fallen into the hands of the revolutionists ; when 
the Pope, robbed of his estate, sat a prisoner in 
the Vatican — the enemies of the Church rejoiced and 
hoped that the Roman people would in a short time 
forget their lawful sovereign, and would hail as their 
deliverer him to whom the irony of fate had given 
the surname of the man of honor, or " the gentleman- 
king." 

That the boasting of these infidels proved futile 
is proved by the late events in Rome with such evi- 
dence of facts as madness and total blindness alone 
could deny. Such is the power of great events that 
by their means the thoughts, sentiments, and secrets 
of the heart, which otherwise would not have as- 
sumed a visible and tangible form, become mani- 
fest to the eyes of all. This power the death of the 
great pontiff Pius IX. exercised over the hearts of 
the Roman people. When we speak here of the 
Roman people, we mean those of " royal " Rome 
in opposition to " legal" Rome, which emigrated 



48 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



from Upper Italy, Sicily, and Naples, and tarries in 
the city of the seven hills, but through whose veins 
no Roman blood courses. 

The sword of sorrow which pierced the heart 
of the Roman people at the death of Pius IX. has re- 
vealed the innermost secrets of their hearts. When 
on the morning of February 7th, at about ten o'clock, 
the bells of Rome rang for the exposition of the 
Blessed Sacrament, anxious inquiries were made by 
every one as to its significance. The faithful entered 
the churches and saw the Blessed Sacrament covered 
with a veil, as is prescribed when devotions for the 
dying are taking place. Who could this dying per- 
son be ? 

Like wildfire the news of the dangerous condi- 
tion of the holy father spread from St. Peter's to the 
Porta Pia, and from the Piazza del Popolo to the 
Lateran. But as the Roman people, even more than 
those of other countries, had been so frequently 
alarmed by false reports of death, the news at first 
found but few believers. When, however, the 
rumor was confirmed by the announcement of the 
pastors, who had been ordered by the Cardinal- Vicar 
to hold these devotions, every one flocked to the 
church in order to beseech the Lord to prolong the 
precious life of the holy father. Scarcely an hour 
had elapsed, before the churches were crowded to 
excess with weeping and sobbing people. 

Others, however, could find no rest at the 
thought that the life of the holy father was seriously 
endangered. They left their work and hurried 
towards St. Peter's, where, alas ! the sad news was 
but too soon confirmed. The Roman nobility, who 
during the Piedmontese government had manifested 
a loyalty towards their legitimate sovereign, the hoi}' 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



49 



father, which entitles them to the gratitude of the 
whole Christian world, now hurried towards the 
Vatican in order to obtain more definite information 
with regard to the condition of the holy father, and 
to convey to his Holiness the expression of their heart- 
felt sympathy. The number of princely carriages 
wending their way towards St. Peter's was so great 
that the passage across the bridge leading to the cas- 
tle of St. Angelo was for a time impeded. The mul- 
titude in the church of St. Peter's and in front of the 
gate which leads by the colonnade of Bernini into the 
Vatican increased momentarily. Every one who 
came out through this gate was detained and over- 
whelmed with questions concerning the condition of 
the holy father. The Swiss Guard had closed the 
larger gates and permitted the smaller ones only to 
remain open, in order to avoid all disturbance in the 
crowd. One of the highest officers of the guard was 
constantly present to give the necessary commands. 
All who belonged to the papal palace were allowed 
to enter ; to all others admittance was strictly re- 
fused. Whoever had reached the antechamber of 
the papal palace was unable to leave the Vatican 
until the death of the holy father had taken place. 

As early as three o'clock the Secretary of the 
Italian Cabinet, Delia Rocca, informed the ministers 
that the Pope had died at 2.30, and the ''Agen- 
zia Stefani," which claims to receive its information 
always from the most reliable sources, was guilty of 
the unqualified silliness or wickedness of announcing 
the death of his Holiness to the world three hours 
before it had taken place. 

But the Roman people did not credit any of these 
reports. They went by thousands to St. Peter's, 
and would not believe the sad news until they had 



50 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

heard it from one who came out of the Vatican, 
so strong was their attachment to Pius IX. 

The news of the death of the beloved pontiff 
spread during the same evening throughout the 
greater part of the city, and was everywhere re- 
ceived by the populace with the same manifestation 
of sincere sorrow and sympathy. The theatres, which 
during the carnivals are constantly filled, were now 
empty and deserted. The mourning was universal. 

As soon as the morning of the 8th February 
dawned, small groups might be seen in front of every 
church. What were they doing ? They read the 
official announcement of the death of Pius IX. by the 
Cardinal- Vicar Monaco. We have already given 
the text of this document. Rome gave on this day — 
we refer to it Avith pride and jo}^ — a most brilliant 
testimony in favor of Pius IX., a testimony the more 
valuable as it was a spontaneous outpouring of its 
heart, not urged by any worldly consideration. 
During the whole of February 8th, and also during 
part of the folloAving day, all the stores and shops of 
the cit}'' remained closed, and this without any order 
from the police, as had been the case at the death of 
Victor Emmanuel. The signs of mourning were 
visible in all the great streets of Rome ; even the 
Jews in Ghetto would not alloAv themselves to be out- 
done in their manifestation of attachment to his Holi- 
ness. Their doors remained closed during two whole 
daj^s. 

Even the royal court in the Quirinal interested it- 
self in the condition of the holy father. King Humbert 
I. as well as Queen Pia of Portugal, who had come to 
Rome to assist at the obsequies of her father, Victor 
Emmanuel, sent their attendants to the Vatican to in- 
quire about the health of the holy father. 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 5 1 

The king, as soon as he had learned the death of 
his HoHness, broke off a soiree with the ambassador of 
Austria. 

The conduct of the government, on the other 
hand, though not positively hostile, was indifferent in 
the highest degree. It did nothing but what it was 
obliged to do by the laws of the guarantees, and this 
in such a manner as to render evident the baseness of 
its sentiments. It did not close the theatres until 
the evening of February 8th, although it had learned 
the death of the holy father on the previous evening 
at six o'clock. It closed the Exchange but for one 
day, and ordered that the public military concerts 
which took place for the amusement of the pleasure- 
seekers, in the gardens on the heights of the Pincio, 
should be suspended till further notice. 

From three to four o'clock of February 8th, all 
the bells of Rome were tolled as if they would plead 
for prayers for the eternal repose of the great Pius. 
This sad and melancholy ringing of the bells was the 
expression of universal mourning which the death of 
Pius IX. had caused throughout the Eternal City. 
Pius IX. had, during his life, created an enthusiasm 
far more widespread than that created in France by 
Napoleon I. during the first decade of the present 
century. The sorrow, however, with which his 
death was lamented was, if possible, still more univer- 
sal ; since every heart which can value magnanimity 
and true worth lost in Pius IX. its most perfect 
model and ideal. 



CHAPTER VII. 

AT THE BIER. 

At eight o'clock on the evening of February 8th, 
the members of the papal palace and other officers of 
the Holy See called on his Eminence Cardinal Pecci, 
Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church. He imme- 
diately left his room and went to the hall where the 
dead pontiff lay, in order to perform the act of the 
recognition of the corpse. His Eminence was followed 
by the- clerics of the Apostolic Chamber ; the Major- 
domo, Monsignor Macchi, Monsignors Casali del 
Drago and della Volpe, private chamberlains of his 
Holiness. 

When they had arrived in the hall, they threw 
themselves on their knees at the bed upon which 
rested the mortal remains of Pius IX., and adored in 
all humility of heart the inscrutable disposition of 
Divine Providence. After his Eminence Cardinal 
Pecci had finished a prayer, he arose, approached the 
bier, and struck the brow of the dead pontiff three 
times with a silver mallet, pronouncing each time the 
following words : " Holy father, Pius IX. ;" then 
he turned to his attendants and declared that Pius 
IX. was dead, and forthwith intoned the " De pro- 
fundis," to which the attendants responded with 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



53 



deep emotion. He repeated once more the absolu- 
tion, and sprinkled the countenance of his HoHness 
with holy water. 

Then Mgr. Pericoli, Clerk of the Chamber and 
Dean of the College of x\postolic Protonotaries, 
knelt at the bedside of the dead Pontiff and read the 
folloAving recognition of the corpse, which we trans- 
late from the original : 




THE CAMERLENGO WITH THE SILVER MALLET. 

"This morning, February 8th, at eight o'clock, 
Cardinal Pecci, Chamberlain of the Holy Roman 
Church, accompanied by the clerks of the chamber, 
by Mgr. Vice-Chamberlain, by Mgr. Auditor of the 
Reverend Chamber, by the Advocate-General of the 
Apostolic Chamber, by the Procurator-General, and 
by the secretaries and chancellors of the above said 
chamber, was conducted into the private rooms of 



54 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

his Holiness, in one ot which he found upon the bed 
of death the corpse of his HoHness. The death of the 
holy father being established, and the prayers for the 
occasion recited on behalf of his blessed soul, his Emi- 
nence demanded of Mgr. Macchi, his Holiness's Mas- 
ter of the Chamber, the Ring of the Fisherman, 
which by the same Mgr. Macchi was immediately 
delivered to the Chamberlain, who received it, here- 
after to present it in the first congregation of car- 




THE INSPECTION OF THE CORPSE. 



dinals, for which ring his Eminence gave a receipt 
to the aforesaid Monsignor, Master of the Chamber. 

' ' After that, at the request of the Cardinal Cham- 
berlain, a solemn act of these proceedings was drawn 
up and signed by Mgr. Pericoli, Clerk of the Cham- 
ber and Dean of the College of the ApostoUc Pro- 
tonotaries ; the said act being attested by the Most 
Eminent and Most Reverend Chamberlain, by the 
others above nanied, and by two of the private ch^m- 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



55 



berlains of the late pontiff, the Rev. Mgrs. Casali del 
Drago and della Volpe being witnesses thereto. 

" Adhering to the injunctions of the Most Eminent 
and Most Reverend Chamberlain to the clerks of the 
Apostolic Chamber, these have met together before 
the same Most Reverend Eminence, and, in accord- 
ance with the ancient customs, divided the different 
duties between them." 

At this solemn act there were present, besides 
the above-named personages. Mgr. Vanutelli, sub- 
stitute of the secretary (brother of the Nuncio in Bel- 
gium), the Princes Barberini and Altieri, command- 
ers of the Noble Guard. 

His Eminence Cardinal Pecci hereupon left the 
death-chamber and returned to his own apartments. 

The cherished remains of the„ holy father rested 
upon an iron bed, covered with red silk and a white 
coverlet, so that only his head could be seen. The 
countenance, which during the last few hours of his 
life had been somewhat contracted on account of 
excessive pain, took again all the expression of super- 
human kindness with which it had shone in life, and, 
instead of inspiring terror, drew to itself with irre- 
sistible force every one who approached. 

During the night between the 8th and 9th of 
February the process of embalming took place. Pro- 
fessor Ceccarelli, to whom this function had been in- 
trusted, was attended by the three physicians who 
had assisted him during the sickness of the holy 
father. The other medical attendants of the palace, 
Drs. Battistini, Melata, Sciarra, Capparoni, and 
Prima, also took part. The embalming began at eight 
o'clock, and was completed at four o'clock next 
morning. It was performed by means of injection, 
as also by means of preserving the separated viscera, 



56 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



The result was so favorable, that even on the sixth 
day not the slightest sign of decay could be detected. 
This was the more desirable, since the entire failure 
of the embalming of Victor Emmanuel was still fresh 
in the memory of all. 

About ten o'clock the investment of the dead 
pontiff began. One hour afterwards the rooms were 
opened, and the body of the great Pius was offered to 
the veneration of his faithful children. Long ere 
this many persons who had access to the Vatican 
had waited in anxious expectation in the antecham- 
ber. They entered and crowded around the dead 
pontiff, touched his body with sacred objects, and 
knelt in prayer at his side. The tears, which trickled 
down the cheeks of all, spoke more eloquently than 
words of the love felt for Pius IX. 

There he rested upon the bier, decorated with 
red silk, clothed in his ordinary white garments, and 
in the mozetta, a dark red cape ; the head was cov- 
ered with the camauro, a dark velvet beretta. His 
arms were crossed upon his breast, his hands were 
white as snow. A heavenly peace shone from his 
countenance. Mildness, amiability, attractiveness, 
seemed to have descended from heaven upon the 
countenance of Pius IX. His features were those of 
the just man who has fallen asleep in the peace of the 
Lord, enjoying a foretaste of the heavenly glory ; his 
cheek Avas transparent as wax, and around his lips 
played a heavenly smile. The hand which had never 
tired of doing good, and had never trembled in defend- 
ing the rights of the Church, rested cold and lifeless on 
his breast ; but the crucifix, the last hope and refuge 
of him who believes and loves, was still clasped in 
sacred embrace as an assured pledge of a glorious 
resurrection. 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



59 



The bier of Pius IX. was surrounded by every 
thing symbolic of love and veneration, as well as ex- 
pressive of sorrow and grief. In the streets and pub- 
lic places of Rome, as in the Vatican, the 8th and 9th 
of Februar}' beheld an unbroken succession of testi- 
monials of love and veneration for Pius IX. His 
mortal eye could no longer see them, but with the 
eyes of the spirit he looked down upon his devoted 
children from the heights of heaven, and poured into 
many a sorrow-stricken heart the balm of consola- 
tion and hope. 

Words cannot express the grief which was 
manifested around the bier of the holy father, when, 
at four o'clock, the Duke de Witten announced the 
order of the Major-domo, Mgr. Ricci, that all should 
leave the death-chamber. It became almost neces- 
sary for the Guard of Honor, which watched over 
the sacred remains, to use violence in order to exe- 
cute the command. The doors were closed and en- 
trance refused. Yet every now and then distin- 
guished persons, Romans as well as foreigners, called 
and begged to be allowed to kiss once more the feet 
of his Holiness. How sad was their disappointment 
when they found the doors closed ! Slowly, silently, 
and with weeping eyes they went home, as if the 
cherubim had closed to them the gates of Paradise. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



THE TRANSLATION OF THE REMAINS. 

At four o'clock on the evening of February 9th, 
the venerated body of the great Pius was clothed in 
the episcopal vestments, and placed upon a bier pro- 
vided for the purpose of conveying the body from 
the Vatican palace to the adjoining Basilica of 
St. Peter. 

After the lapse of one hour, admission to the 
consistorial hall was again granted. There the holy 
father was, for a few hours longer, the object of ven- 
eration for many persons of high rank, who had 
hitherto been prevented from kissing his feet in lov- 
ing remembrance. 

Here he rested, the golden mitre upon his head, the 
hands folded upon his breast, and the image of his 
Lord and of his own life clasped in loving embrace. 

In the meantime those who were about to take 
part in the procession had gathered in the hall and 
in the adjoining chambers. The clock of St. Peter's 
struck half-past six, when the pall-bearers took up 
the venerated remains of the beloved holy father, 
and the procession began to move. 

At the head marched the pages, clothed in red 
velvet ; these were followed by the clergy, bearing 



I 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



63 



flghted tapers in their hands. On both sides the 
Swiss Guards, the most devoted attendants of Pius 
IX., marched with slow and solemn step, dressed in 
their peculiarly striking- uniform. After these came 
the mace-bearers, dressed in Spanish costumes, and 
the officers of the Swiss Guards. 

Then followed the bier upon which rested the 
remains of the immortal Pius IX., borne by the 
Palafrenieri, clothed in red velvet, surrounded by the 
Papal Guard of Honor, and the Penitentiaries of the 
Vatican Basilica, also bearing lighted tapers in their 
hands. 

Behind the bier followed his Eminence Mgr. 
Ricci, Major-Domo ; Mgr. Macchi, Maestro di Cam- 
era ; Mgr. Saminiatelli, Papal Almoner ; the Mgrs. Ne- 
grotto, Casali del Drago, di Bisogno, and della Volpe, 
private Chamberlains, and Mgr. Vanutelli, substitute 
of the Secretary of State. These were followed by 
the laics, functionaries at the Vatican palace ; the 
Marquis Sachetti, Lord High Steward, the Marquis 
Serlupi, and Commendatore Fillipani, Chief Cup- 
bearer. 

The next group consisted of the Duke of Castel- 
vecchio, General of the Noble Guard, Prince Al- 
tieri. Colonel, and the rest of the officers of the same 
corps. 

After these might be seen, in great numbers, the 
cardinals of the holy Roman Church, clothed in vio- 
let gowns, capes fringed with ermine, and berettas 
of red silk ; these also bore lighted tapers, and at the 
same time recited the Psalms. 

The College of Cardinals was followed by his 
Excellency Filippo Orsini, prince assistant at the 
throne ; Prince Marco Chigi, Marshal of the Con- 
clave ; Prince Ruspoli, Master of the Sacro Ospi- 



64 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



zio ; a long file of Roman patricians of the highest 
rank, and by many other noble personages from 
abroad. The close of the procession was formed by 
a number of private chamberlains of his Holiness, and 
a division of the Palatine Guard of Honor. 

The overwhelming effect produced by this sol- 
emn procession exceeds anything that can be pic- 
tured by the most lively imagination. The earnest 
bearing of the participants, the tapers glimmering 
through the darkness of the night, the sounds of the 
prayers dying away in the long corridors and broad 
vaults of the Vatican palace, the mourning — deep, 
though resigned — which spoke from every counte- 
nance ; all this made a spectacle which took possession 
of the inmost recesses of the heart ; it was, in a word, 
a procession such as Torquatus may have seen in the 
vaults of the Catacombs. 

The solemn funeral procession passed along the 
spacious halls of the Vatican, then through the far- 
famed galleries of Raphael, through the royal hall, 
and thence down the broad marble steps, as over 
so many grand monuments that proclaimed the great- 
ness of the Roman pontiffs. 

A great number of Roman citizens who, by a 
special favor, had obtained admission to the Vatican, 
had stationed themselves along the walls of the corri- 
dors, where with tears in their eyes and with audible 
sobs they bade a last farewell to their beloved father 
and king. 

At seven o'clock the funeral cortege reached 
the Chapel of the Most Blessed Sacrament in St. 
Peter's. The sacred species had been removed to 
the altar of the crucifixion of St. Peter, situated in 
the left aisle. The corpse was received with impres- 
sive solemnity by the Chapter of the Vatican Ba- 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



65 



silica, and placed upon the catafalque erected for that 
purpose. 

All the cardinals and ecclesiastical dignitaries 
who had taken part in the procession arranged 
themselves in a circle around the catafalque. The 
choir of the Capella Giuglia intoned the " Libera 
me Domine ;" the tones burst forth slowly and sol- 
emnly, re-echoing from the gigantic pilasters that 
stood opposite, and, like unto distant thunder, died 
away in the vaults of St. Peter's. Mgr. Folicaldi, 
Archbishop of Ephesus and Canon of the Basilica, 
performed the sacred ceremony of absolution. 

All withdrew after taking one more long and 
affectionate look at the illustrious dead ; the last step 
died away in the spacious hall ; deep and still deeper 
the night enveloped the sublime dome of Michael 
Angelo. Deathlike silence reigned supreme at St. 
Peter's, interrupted ever and anon by the clank of 
swords when the detachment of the Papal Noble 
Guard who kept watch around the bier of their be- 
loved sovereign Pius IX. were relieved. 



CHAPTER IX. 

IN ST. Peter's. 

This silence was but of brief duration. Pius IX. , 
whose life had fallen upon stormy times, was des- 
tined to enjoy but a brief repose even in death. The 
hour of midnight had scarcely sounded from the 
tower of St. Peter's w^hen voices were heard at the 
gates. Who dares disturb the rest of the venerable 
dead, who while alive could have insured silence by 
a single look ? The murmurs grow louder, the 
voices become more audible. Do they intend to 
offer violence, to break through the railing and force 
open the gates ? 

Yes, they mean to offer violence, but not that 
rude violence which works only destruction ; but 
gentle force prompted by great and deep-seated love. 
Already at the midnight hour the devoted children 
of Pius stand in front of the bronze gates of St. 
Peter's, demanding entrance, in order to gaze upon 
their beloved father, to pray for his repose, to kiss 
reverently his sacred feet, and to draw courage and 
hope from his very countenance, though no longer 
glowing with that fire and animation which illum- 
ined it in life, in order to renew their resolve to live 
and suffer according to his noble and heroic example. 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 6/ 



Standing- in front of the grated entrance, or seated 
on the steps of the terrace, the Romans waited from 
midnight till the break of day, in order to be at the 
bier of Pio Nono. 

Under the left colonnade of Bernini a battalion 
of infantry was stationed ; the police and a number 
of carabinieri stood on the terrace in front of the 
church to insure public order. However, this demon- 
stration of the Romans in favor of the papal sover- 
eignty was, in its very nature, too peaceable to cause 
any apprehension of disturbance. 

When the dawn of February loth broke upon 
the spray of the fountains in the square of St. 
Peter's, the grated gates of the church were thrown 
open, and, like a living stream, the assembled mass 
poured into the spacious vestibule. This square, 
which can easily contain two hundred thousand per- 
sons, was thronged with hackney coaches and the 
carriages of nobles ; and along the three avenues which 
lead to St. Peter's might be seen cabs and escutch- 
eoned carriages, three abreast, winding slowly to- 
wards the church. The whole scene, as viewed from 
the steps of the terrace, was grand and affecting ; 
and the thick fog, which seemed to challenge the 
breaking dawn, was a faithful picture of the deep 
mourning with which the death of Pius IX. had filled 
the hearts of the Romans and of the entire Catholic 
world. Though the multitude had long to wait, and 
the morning breeze was chilly, not a word of com- 
plaint nor a sound of impatience escaped their lips. 
The countenances of men and women, of peasant and 
citizen, of priests and laymen, presented an expres- 
sion of sincere and deep sorrow, as if they would say 
to the stranger, who happened to lean against the 
base of one of the colossal pillars of the fagade, view- 



68 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



ing them with inquiring- looks : " Weep Avith us ; 
for our father is dead." 

A feAv minutes before seven o'clock, the bars 
were removed, and a prolonged murmur of satisfac- 
tion arose from the crowd. The outer door on the 
left turned on its hinges ; ever}^ one crowded to- 
wards it ; but immediately after the door next to it 
opened, and thus a part of the multitude found en- 
trance there. At the same time the doors at the 
right of the main entrance were thrown open. The 
janitors deserve all praise for the great prudence 
which they exercised on this occasion ; for it was by 
this means that the danger attendant on a crowd of 
the kind was averted. 

As the multitude entered they beheld at first the 
blinding light that streamed from the Chapel of the 
Blessed Sacrament into the yet partially dark nave of 
St. Peter's. Riveting their gaze upon the spot where 
the precious remains rested, they passed by the great 
works of art, not deeming them worthy of even a 
passing glance, and proceeded to the chapel. There, 
towards the left of the grated door, they beheld the 
bier of their beloved father. 

Upon a bed of state, hung with red velvet, lies 
Pius IX., vested in his episcopal robes. The upper 
part of the body is somewhat raised, and can be 
seen from the middle aisle. He wears violet gloves 
inter Avoven with silver. The bishop's ring glitters 
on his finger. Even in death, he clasps in fond em- 
brace the cross, the sign of our undying hopes, Avhich 
had ever accompanied him during life. The mitre, 
inlaid with gold, adorns his sacred brow. His coun- 
tenance, whose lineaments death itself could not dis- 
tort, beams with majesty and grandeur, and retains 
that amiability and sweetness which -makes one imag- 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



71 



ine that he stands before the shrine of a saint. His 
eye, which had so long kept faithful ward from the 
watch-tower of the Church, to guide the storm-tossed 
nations from the foaming sea to the rock on which he 
stood, is closed as if in sleep. The lips, that had 
uttered the word of forgiveness to many an erring 
soul, are mute ; but the smile, which in life enchanted 
all who saw it, still plays around his lips, and even 
now captivates the beholder ; for it is the expression 
of his great and loving heart. 

On either side of the catafalque hangs a car- 
dinal's hat, adorned with heavy tassels of silk. Four 
soldiers of the Papal Guard, dressed in a uniform of 
light and dark blue, a shining helmet surmounted 
with a white cockade, stand motionless with drawn 
swords at the four corners of the bier. One of the 
Swiss Guards, with helmet and halberd, is stationed 
at the grate which separates the Chapel of the Blessed 
Sacrament from the grand nave. 

The feet of the Pope, covered with slippers of red 
silk, were extended through the bars of the grate in 
such a manner that the pious faithful were enabled 
to kiss them. It was affecting to the highest degree 
to witness how the devout assembly endeavored to 
touch the vestments of the holy father with medals, 
chaplets, crucifixes, rings, and pictures, in order to 
carry them away in loving and perpetual remem- 
brance. 

However, the multitude swelled like a mountain 
torrent. The carabinieri, who had been stationed 
in the church, outside the grating of the chapel, 
were no longer able to withstand the throng. Rein- 
forcements were called in. The people were al- 
lowed to enter at one of the two gates on the left 
side ; a semicircle w^as formed by the police in front 



72 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



of the gratiag, so that only two or three persons at a 
time had room to pass and kiss the feet of his Holi- 
ness. They were allowed to tarry for a moment at 
the bier, to take one sorrowful glance at the beloved 
features of their dead pontiff, after which they issued 
from the church at the door on the extreme right. 
The door on the extreme left, as you enter, was left 
open for those Avhose time Avas too limited to make 
the pious yet tedious pilgrimage to the feet of the 
holy father. 

To express the exclamations of love and sorrow 
which escaped from the lips of the faithful as they 
arrived at the grating, to portray the devotion with 
which they kissed the feet of their departed father, 
would require the pen of a Dante and the pencil of a 
Raphael. 

At ten o'clock it was evident that the arrange- 
ments made for the preservation of order were insuffi- 
cient. The multitude grows from minute to minute, 
and has become a rushing torrent. The carabinieri 
are powerless to oppose it ; they are swept away by 
the billows of living beings. At this stage a numer- 
ous division of soldiers of the line enter through the 
door of the sacristy, by permission of Mgr. Theodoli, 
rector of the church ; these troops separate the mul- 
titude, and form in front of the grate behind which 
the catafalque looms up. All the entrances to the 
vestibule are closed, with the exception of the second, 
which answers as an exit. The last grated door to 
the left is opened from time to time, allowing sev- 
eral thousand people to enter at each opening. From 
the choir chapel, opposite that of the Blessed Sacra- 
ment, Avhere the canons of St. Peter's celebrated di- 
vine service, are heard in tones at once earnest and 
solemn the sounds of the requiem. 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



73 



At eleven o'clock, St. Peter's place, the adjoin- 
ing Piazza Rusticucci, the avenues, the bridges, the 
public squares, all the streets of the Leonine City are 
closely packed with people and vehicles. All Rome 
moves towards St. Peter's, in order to bestow a last 
tribute of veneration upon her father, benefactor, 
king, and pontiff. The inhabitants of the neighboring 
cities and villages, who had come to Rome in great 
numbers, mingled with the throng. 

At noon the multitude who have flocked to the 
bier of Pius IX. exceeds all belief. Perfect order, 
however, is observed ; the behavior of the Roman 
people is calm and dignified. The solemn requiem 
mass is over. The bronze statue of St. Peter and 
the tomb of the Prince of the Apostles are surround- 
ed at all hours by the faithful of every age and con- 
dition of life, who, on bended knees, remember in 
pious supplication their dearly beloved deceased 
father. 

Three o'clock witnesses in the great square of 
St. Peter's and its surroundings a scene similar to 
that which was exhibited in former and better times 
on all the great festivals of the Church. An inter- 
minable procession of hackney coaches and princely 
carriages moves in front of St. Peter's towards 
Borgo di Santo Spirito and Ponte Sisto, in order to 
disperse themselves from these points in all direc- 
tions. 

At lour o'clock, the throng in front of the grating 
of the vestibule increases to such an extent that it is 
resolved, in order to avoid accidents, to close the 
church. This decision causes great dissatisfaction 
among the assembled people, since many who had 
come from Frascati, Albano, TivoH, and other dis- 
tant cities, and who had intended to return on the . 



74 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



same evening, found themselves disappointed in their 
hopes of kissing the feet of the holy father. 

It would seem as if the number of people flock- 
ing to the bier of Pius IX. should have decreased 
after the first day. But the same spectacle, more im- 
posing even, if possible, took place on the three fol- 
lowing days. The soldiers, in order to keep the 
multitude in check, were obliged to form a double 
line, extending to the second flight of stairs, and thus 
let the people file into the .church. The terrace and 
the piazza of St. Peter's were taken possession of, 
from early morn till late at night, by a vast con- 
course of people. Even the rain, which fell in great 
abundance on the 12th of February, was not able to 
disperse the crowd whose attachment to Pius IX. was 
unconquerable. 

There were witnessed at the bier of the immortal 
Pius IX. many things calculated to console and edify ; 
for the days between the 7th and 23d of February 
were days of a solemn recognition of the papacy. 
On the other hand, many things caused deep sorrow 
and grief. The pen is loath to describe them, but 
truth demands it imperatively. 

As the life of Pius IX. had been a portrait of the 
life of our Lord, Crux de Cruce, so also his bier in St. 
Peter's presented many striking points of similarity 
to the sepulchre of our Lord on Mount Calvary. 

Victor Emmanuel, King of Italy, had died, on 
the 9th of January, in the palace of the Quirinal, and 
was buried in the Pantheon, both usurped from his 
Holiness. On his deathbed he implored forgiveness 
of the Pope for all the wrongs inflicted on the 
Church. He died with sentiments of sincere contri- 
tion, like the penitent thief on the cross. Pius IX. 
uttered in his behalf the following consoling words ; 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



75 



" May God pardon him, as I also pardon him from 
the bottom of my heart." After the lapse of one 
month, the noble Pius followed him to the grave. 
And now the days of the hero of the island of Caprera, 
Garibaldi, seem to be numbered. But even if 
Pius IX. should not, according to the example of his 
Lord, die in so striking a manner, between two 
thieves, it will remain true, nevertheless, that the 




THE PANTHEON. 



tomb of Pius bears unmistakable points of similarity 
to the sepulchre of our Lord in Jerusalem. 

Pilate said to the Pharisees, " You have a guard : 
go, guard it as you know ; but they going, secured 
the sepulchre with guards" (Matt. xxvi. 65). 

This bier, these guards, carabinieri and sol- 
diers, whom the government of Italy sent to guard 
in death him whom during life they had robbed 
of his royal diadem, remind us vividly of the guard 
which Pilate stationed at the sepulchre of Him whose 
vicar Pius IX. had been upon earth. 

Insults and rudeness were not wanting around 



76 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



the bier of him whom the whole world venerates. 
Some Italian soldiers, and not a few Italian officers, 
conducted themselves, on this occasion, in St. Peter's, 
in such a manner as to call upon them the condemna- 
tion of all Europe. They used such words to the vis- 
itors of the bier of Pius IX. and took such unbecom- 
ing hberties as were by no means in conformity 
with the decency we naturally expect from officers of 
the crown, and were altogether inexcusable when the 
sanctity of the place in which they happened is taken 
into consideration. 

Even a Judas was not wanting at the death of 
Pius IX. Marco Minghetti, who, as minister of Pius 
IX., had received the Blessed Sacrament from the 
pontiff's hand, in confirmation of his oath of loyalty, 
and who, a short time afterwards, betrayed him so 
shamefully, was also at the bier of Pius IX. Who 
knows what sentiments the lifeless countenance of his 
sovereign engendered in his soul ? 

But the consoling personages of the sepulchre 
of Christ were also found in St. Peter's on this oc- 
casion. During the night many of the Roman no- 
bility, by a special favor of Mgr. Theodoli, ap- 
proached, like Nicodemus of old, to pay their respect 
and veneration to Pius, the Vicar of our Lord. Even 
the pious women were not wanting. They touched 
the precious remains of the holy father with sacred 
objects, which, like Veronica, they carried off, as a 
precious souvenir of their beloved pontiff. 

Such are the impressions received in these days 
at Rome — impressions calculated to cheer the gloomy 
hours of a whole lifetime — impressions the more val- 
uable because they proved, with irresistible force, that 
the heart of the Roman people points towards St. 
Peter's, as the magnet turns towards the pole. 



CHAPTER X. 



THE BURIAL. 

The entrance into the grandest temple which 
man lias erected in honor of his Creator, is always 
elevating and impressive. But he who, on the eve- 
ning of the 13th of Februarv, entered St. Peter's 
through the small side-door, would be overpowered 
bv a feelins: which he himself would not be able to 
describe. Upon slender iron candlesticks, placed 
here and there, burned small wax tapers, which lit 
up the marble floor of St. Peter's Avith a melancholy 
effect. Further on glimmered the lamps of the 
'■ Confessio," where the sacred body of the Galilean 
Fisherman reposes, to whom Christ entrusted the 
guidance of his Church. On either side of him re- 
pose many of his glorious successors, whose epitaphs 
are a compendious history of the world. To these 
was about to be associated one of the " best hated." 
but at the same time most affectionately beloved, of 
Roman pontiffs. 

The bier upon vrhich reposed the mortal re- 
mains of Pius IX. had been moved into the middle of 
the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament. In front of the 
railing a great number of the Roman nobilitv and 
many distinguished foreigners, who had obtained an 



78 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



entrance-ticket, waited anxiously. They numbered 
from four to five thousand. 

The shades of the approaching night had already 
begun to shroud the magnificent basilica, when the 
cardinals, who had assembled at six o'clock in the 
Hall of the Consistory, entered the chapel. In pass- 
ing they kissed the feet of the dead pontiff, as is 
prescribed by the ritual, making a genuflection at 
the bier, and then ranged themselves in a circle 
around the catafalque. ■ From the sacristy the 
canons and beneficiaries, together with the choir of 
the Capella Giuglia, issued two by two. Having ar- 
rived at the bier, Mgr. Folicaldi, Archbishop of 
Ephesus, clothed in black cope and surplice, be- 
sprinkled the venerable corpse with holy water, re- 
cited the prescribed prayer, and intoned with fal- 
tering voice the "Miserere." The singers of the 
Julian Chapel, under the excellent direction of Salva- 
tore Meluzzi, answered with those deep sonorous 
tones, so characteristic of genuine church-music, and 
so well calculated to touch the heart and raise it 
heavenward. 

The solemn moment had arrived in which the 
mortal remains of Pius IX. were to be translated to 
that place in which every Pope is buried until the 
death of his successor. 

The great silver cross, which headed the pro- 
cession was followed by the alumni of the Vatican 
Seminary, bearing lighted tapers and chanting the 
"Miserere." The chapter of St. Peter's, with the 
Arch-priest of the Basilica, Cardinal Edward Borro- 
meo, followed. Then came the bier, surrounded by the 
Guard of Honor and a division of the Swiss Guard. 
The clergy of St. Peter's, the officers of the Guard 
of Nobles, and the members of the archconfrater- 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



79 



nity of St. Michael in Borgo, had divided among 
themselves the honor of carrying the sacred remains 
of the great Pius to the grave. Behind the cofhn 
followed their Eminences the Cardinals, the officers 
of the Vatican Palace, the private chamberlains, and 
many others whom special ties of love and gratitude 




CARDINAL BORROMEO. 

had attached to the venerable deceased. A division 
of the Palatine Guard of Honor, composed of Roman 
citizens, closed the solemn funeral cortege. 

The procession having issued from the Chapel of 
the Blessed Sacrament, turned towards the right, in 
the direction of the tomb of the Prince of the Apos- 
tles. The sounds of the " Miserere" re-echo from the 
gigantic pillars of the church ; the multitude is on 



8o A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

bended knees ; the procession moves more and more 
slowly ; the bier stops for a moment in front of the 




bronze statue of St. Peter. The first of the long 
line of popes seems about to bless in his march to 
the grave the dead Pius, the only one who has sur- 
passed the years of St. Peter, 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



At the "Confessio," the procession turns again 
towards the left, going- down the middle aisle, and 
enters the chapel of the choir. The bier is turned in 
such a manner that the dead pontiff is carried as is 
prescribed, the head first entering the chapel. There 
he is placed in the middle, surrounded by numerous 
clerks. After Mgr. Folicaldi has recited the prayer 
prescribed in the ritual for such occasions, Mgr. 
Ricci, Chief Chamberlain, approaches the bier and 
covers the face of the deceased with a white cloth ; 
the attendant taking one long fixed look at the amia- 
ble features of Pius IX. Many sobs are heard dur- 
ing the pauses which the singers of the Capella 
Giuglia are wont to make from time to time. Mgr. 
Martinucci, Papal Master of Ceremonies, spreads a 
large red silk veil over the entire body of the de- 
ceased, whereupon the pall-bearers place the corpse 
in the first cofiin, made of pine wood. The chief 
steward approaches and deposits in the coffin three 
red velvet purses containing, respectively, thirty-two 
golden, thirty-two silver, and thirty-two copper med- 
als, corresponding to the number of years of the 
reign of Pius. At the feet of the dead pontiff lies 
enclosed in a metal case a eulogy written on parch- 
ment, the work of Mgr. Mercurelli, describing the 
deeds of his pontificate. A silk ribbon is placed 
crosswise upon the coffin, sealed with five different 
seals. Archbishop Folicaldi pronounces the last 
absolution, the lid of the coffin is put on, and the 
mortal remains of one of the most glorious Roman 
pontiffs are hidden forever from the sight of his 
mourning children. 

Whilst Filiberto Pomponi, the chancellor of the 
chapter of St. Peter's, read a document in which 
he described all that had transpired since the death 



84 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



of the Pope, the first coffin was placed in a second 
one made of lead, and the cover was sealed with 
seven seals. The leaden coffin was adorned with a 
cross, the coat-of-arms of the Pope without the keys, 
for these emblems are the signs of a living power, 
and with the following inscription : 

CORPUS 

PII IX. p. M. 

VixiT. An. LXXXV.' M. VIII. D. XXVI. 

EccLES. Univer. Praefuit 
An. XXXI. M. Vn. D. XXIII. 
Obiit. Die. VII. Febr. An. MDCCCLXXVIII. 

Both coffins were placed in a third one, made 
of walnut, and Avere then conveyed from the chapel 
to their resting-place. This is above the door that 
leads to the vestry of the choristers, opposite the 
monument of Innocent YIII. The coffin was raised 
by means of a mechanical contrivance about twenty 
feet in the air, and Avhilst the choir sang the last verse 
of the Benedictus, " Illuminare his qui in tenebris et 
in umbra mortis sedent, ad dirigendos pedes nos- 
tros in viam pacis," the coffin disappeared in the 
wall. The masons began their work, and by nine 
o'clock the solemn service was concluded. A simple 
sarcophagus, upon Avhich rests a tiara, bears on the 
outside this short inscription : 

PIUS IX. P. M. 

The diplomatic corps, the wife of the President of 
the American Republic of Costa Rica, and the elite 
of the Romari nobility were present at the solerrir. 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



nity, and had their seats in the gallery of the chapel. 
Long- after the ceremony the faithful were still seen 
kneeling before the newly-closed tomb, but their 
prayer for the repose of the soul of Pius IX. Avas 
involuntarily changed into prayer to a saint. 



CHAPTER XI. 



THE OBSEQUIES. 

It has been the custom for many centuries for 
the cardinals, before they commence the election of 
a new pontiff, to spend several days in prayer for the 
deceased pope. In the year 607, Boniface III. pre- 
scribed that no one should take any steps towards 
the election of a new pontiff until three days had 
elapsed from the death of his predecessor. This cus- 
tom was made a law by Gregory X. in the Gen- 
eral Council of Lyons, 1274, by a decree in which he 
prescribed that, after the death of the pope, the car- 
dinals should wait ten days for the arrival of absent 
electors, and celebrate in the mean time the obsequies 
of the deceased during nine days. Pius IV. in the 
year 1562, ratified this funeral service of nine days 
by the bull In eligendis," and Gregory XV. in the 
year 1622 by the bull " Decet Romanum Pontifi- 
cem," fixed the sum of ten thousand ducats, which 
the expenses of the obsequies were not to exceed. 

In virtue of the decree which the Cardinal Vicar, 
Monaco, issued on February 7th, masses for the dead 
were immediately said in all the churches of Rome 
after the death of Pius IX. They were celebrated 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



87 



with unusual solemnity in the Church of St. Appol- 
linarius, at which the students of the Roman Semi- 
nary assisted ; in the German National Church, " All' 
Anima," where the students of the German College 
added to the solemnity of divine service by their 
melodious singing ; and in the church of the Jesuits, 
where the catafalque erected for the occasion was a 
real work of art. The requiem masses which the 
chapter of St. Peter's had ordered for the dead pontiff 
in the Vatican basilica were likewise conspicuous on 
account of the great display and numerous donations 
of the people. At the conclusion of every service 
the tomb of Pius IX. was surrounded by a throng of 
faithful, who on their knees prayed for his repose, or 
rather for his intercession at the throne of God. 

The cardinals, for a well-known and obvious reason, 
declined to hold a solemn requiem in St. Peter's. But 
the obsequies which the College of Cardinals ordered 
to be held in the Sixtine Chapel in the Vatican were 
the more solemn. This chapel was built by Sixtus 
IV. in 1473, and embellished by the unrivalled paint- 
ings of Michael Angelo. 

It is in the same domestic chapel of the pope that, 
before the entrance of the Italian troops into Rome, 
took place those grand ceremonies which attracted 
so many thousands of strangers to the Eternal Cit}'. 

Formerly, during such solemnities, the far-famed 
tapestries or Arrazzi of Raphael were to be seen, which 
constitute the greatest art treasure of the Vatican 
Gallery. But since 1870 these ceremonies had ceas- 
ed, and strangers were only admitted to admire the 
sublime productions of Michael Angelo. Even the 
director of the renowned choir has retired to his 
beautiful villa at Montefalco, in the much-praised 
vallej' of Clitumnus. 



88 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

On February the 15th, the chapel, after having 
been closed for seven years, was again opened for 
the first time, not indeed for the celebration of a 
joyous and happy festival, but for the obsequies of 
him who had shown himself so often in this chapel 
in all his majesty. In the middle of the chapel rose 
a gigantic catafalque, on which reposed a tiara, the 
emblem of the papal dignity. The design was a pro- 
duction of the mind of the architect, Martinucci. A 
forest of candles surrounded the bier, and the follow- 
ing inscriptions adorned the four sides of the cata- 
falque : 

Petri Annos 
In Romana sede 
Unus Superavit. 

Optimi Principis 
Nomen et Famam 
Est Meritus. 

Mariam D. M. 
Immaculatam. 
Rom. Pont. Magisterium 
Inerrans. 

Beneficentia Ingenio Moderatione 
Animos Omnium ad sui 
Admirationem erexit. 

On the side of the base on which stood the cata- 
falque Avere exhibited four exquisite bas-reliefs. They 
represented the oath of allegiance of the Roman' 
senator to the deceased pontiff ; the proclamation 
of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception ; the 
beneficence of Pius IX.; and the dead pontiff himself 
on the bier, in the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament in 
St. Peter's. 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 9I 

Towards ten o'clock the seats of the cardinals 
were almost filled. They appeared not in their 
scarlet garments, but in their violet mourning-suits 
and capes of ermine. The Monsignori, who took 
position behind their Eminences, were not dressed 
in their festive garments, but in mourning. On both 
sides of the catafalque stood a detachment of the 




CARDINAL DI PIETRO. 



Noble Guard in military attitude ; whilst the Swiss 
Guard, under the command of their leader, the 
Baron Sonnenberg, formed their lines from the 
entrance to the balustrade. General Kansler, the 
hero of Mentana, represented, among the Roman 
nobility those magnanimous and zealous men who 
had hastened to Rome from all countries, ready to 
hazard their lives for the father of Christendom. 



92 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



Outside the balustrade, which divides the Sixtine 
Chapel, the diplomatic corps took the seats on the 
left, whilst the ladies of the Roman nobility occupied 
those on the right. 

The funeral service began. His Eminence Car- 
dinal Di Pietro, was the celebrant of the mass. The 




CARDINAL SACCONI. 



choral song of the requiem was an expression of gen- 
eral mourning, which spread itself over every coun- 
tenance. The Dies Irse was a beautiful composition 
of the director, Mustafa, magnificently and nobly 
executed, and, with the exception of a few faulty 
passages, delivered in a masterly way. The sub- 
lime words of the Dies Irae, and the Last Judg- 
ment, painted by the master hand of Michael Angelo 



CARDINAL SIMEOXI. Page 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



95 



as an altar-piece ; the hopes of the resurrection, 
which sound to the soul amidst the harmonies, and 
the ceiling- of the Sixtine Chapel, with Buonarotti's 
preparation for the resurrection — all these must be 
seen and felt : words can not describe them. The 
five absolutions, as prescribed for the obsequies of 
the pope, were pronounced by their Eminences the 
Cardinals Di Pietro, Sacconi, Guidi, Bilio, and 
Schwartzenberg-. 

After the mass the cardinals proceeded to the 
Consistorial Hall, to receive in public audience the 
diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See. The 
ambassadors of Austria and of Spain had the honor 
of precedence. They were surrounded by the entire 
body of their attaches. These were followed by the 
ministers plenipotentiary of Bavaria, Belgium, Brazil, 
Costa Rica, and Bolivia, who expressed the condol- 
ence of their respective governments to the College 
of Cardinals on the decease of Pius IX. His Emi- 
nence Cardinal Di Pietro, as acting dean of the 
Sacred College, in the name of his colleagues gave 
thanks for the sincere sympathy which the repre- 
sented nations had taken in the general mourning 
felt for the loss of their chief pastor. 

In the afternoon the public reading of the last will 
of Pius IX. took place in the apartments of Cardinal 
Simeoni, the late Secretary of State, in presence of 
the Cardinal Camerlengo, the dean of the apostolic 
protonotaries, and of some relatives of the deceased 
pontiff. It comprises twenty-eight pages, bears the 
date of the year 1875, and is in the Pope's own hand- 
writing. Mgr. Cenni was appointed executor of his 
last will. 

The first article in this testament regards the 
place of interment and the monument : 



96 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

" My body shall be interred in the Church of St. Lorenzo, out- 
side the walls, under the arch where the grating protects the 
stone on which are still to be seen the marks of the martyrdom 
of the Saint. 

The expenses of the tomb shall not exceed the sum of four 
hundred scudi. " 

Then follows the direction that the coat-of-arms 
on the monument should consist of the Pope's insig- 
nia and a death's-head. The epitaph which the holy 
father wrote with his own hand is the most faithful 
copy of his life. It is simple, humble ; and if nothing 
were to remain for coming centuries to portray the 
noble character of Pius IX., it alone would be suffi- 
cient to reveal the characteristics of his life. The 
epitaph reads as follows : 

Ossa et Cineres Pii P. IX. 
Sum. Pont. Vixit. Annos. 
In Pontificatu Ann. 
Orate pro Eo. 

The mortal remains of Pius IX., Pope. 
He lived years ; as Pope . 

The second part of the will embraces the disposi- 
tions concerning alms, to be distributed at his death, 
as also the revenues of the future pope. To the poor 
in Rome he left a sum of three hundred thousand 
francs, and to the officers who, by the fall of Rome, lost 
the necessaries of life, and had remained loyal to the 
pope, he left a fund to indemnify them for their loss. 
To the churches with which he had been connected 
during life, such as the Vatican and Lateran basilicas, 
the collegiate church of Sta. Maria in Via Lata, the 
cathedrals of Imola, Sinigaglia, and Gaeta, he gave 
especial memorials. The persons Avho had remained 
faithful to him in the days of prosperity as well as 
adversity are remembered in the following clauses : 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



97 



" I bequeath to his Royal Highness the Count de 
Chambord, the Madonna del Destino in mosaic. To 
her Royal Highness the Duchess of Modena, a Ma- 
donna in mosaic. To Queen Isabella of Spain, the 
Crucifix of Lucca. In token of fatherly benevo- 
lence, I leave to his Majesty the King of Naples a 
silver group representing the Holy Family. To his 
Imperial and Royal Highness the Grand Duke of 
Tuscany, a copy of Raphael, with silver frame. To 
his Royal Highness the Duke of Parma, a large 
miniature, * Sinite parvulos.' To his Royal High- 
ness Don Alfonso of Bourbon, formerly a pontifical 
zouave, a mother-of-pearl representation of the Res- 
urrection. To her Highness the Princess of Thurn 
and Taxis, the silver cross adorned with diamonds, 
with two angels having in their hands the symbols 
of the passion, and with the relic of the holy Cross." 
In the third and last part of his testament he be- 
queathed the small remnant of his private property 
to his relatives in Sinigaglia. 

Each word of this will bears witness of the great 
soul of Pius IX. Even in death he Avished to be 
buried near those whom, not a desire of vain praise, 
but the power of conviction, had induced to take up 
arms and to fall with weapons in hand at the Porta 
Pia as martys of the papacy. Even in death his 
hand could find no rest till it had given consola- 
tion and succor to his favorite children, the poor. 
Immediately after his death, the sum of one hundred 
thousand francs was distributed by the Cardinal- 
Vicar. The rest of the bequest was distributed, by 
the agreement of the cardinals, among the different 
charitable institutions of Rome and its environs. 

The same funeral services described above were 
also held during the next two days, the i6th and 17th 



98 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



of February, in the same chapel. In like manner the 
College of Cardinals received on the following dsLjs 
the ambassadors and plenipotentiaries of the other 
powers accredited to the Holy See. 



CHAPTER XII. 

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY OF THE LATE SOVEREIGN PON- 
TIFF, PIUS THE NINTH. 

The followinor is the official record of the Hfe of 
Pope Pius IX. , prepared by Mgr. MercureUi, Latin 
Secretary, and deposited in the tomb with the body 
of the deceased pontiff : 

Here Hes the body of Pius IX., sovereign pontiff. 
He Avhose body reposes here was born on the 13th of 
^lay, 1792, at Sinigaglia, and was the fourth son born 
of the marriage of Count Girolamo INIastai-Ferretti 
and the Countess Caterina Solazzi. He was baptized 
bv the name of Giovanni-Maria. He was taught at 
first in the Seminary of the Fathers of the Scuole 
Pie in A'olterra, and afterwards entered on more ad- 
vanced studies in Rome. He was promoted to the 
priesthood in the year 18 19, and celebrated his first 
mass on Easter Sundav in the Church of the Orphan 
Asvlum of St. Anne, called after its founder, Tata 
Giovanni, and of which he was a director. After- 
wards he was appointed as an assistant to Bishop 
Giovanni Muzi, Avho had been elected delegate and 
vicar apostolic for Chili and the other countries of 
South America, and he left Rome in 1823. But on 



lOO A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX, 

his return in 1825 he was appointed director of the 
Apostolic Hospital by Leo XII., of holy memory, 
and two years later was preconized and consecrated 
Archbishop of Spoleto. 

He was endowed with all the qualities of an excel- 
lent bishop, especially those of charity and wisdom, 
and gave brilliant examples of the fact when, in 1831, 
he was invested with an extraordinary mission to 
Spoleto and Perugia, and put an end to the rebellion 
in those provinces by his .urbanity and by aiding the 
insurgents to quit the country and give up their 
arms, which he sent to Rome. Also in the following 
year, when he gave himself up entirely to the solace 
of the people who were sorel}^ afflicted by the fearful 
earthquake in Umbria. His remarkable abilities led 
Gregory XVI. to believe that it would be advisable 
to transfer him to the See of Imola, then vacant, and 
there he showed himself in every way worthy of the 
pastoral charge entrusted to him. He was the first 
of the Italian prelates to establish canonically in his 
diocese the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, 
and to spread its utility. Among other proofs of his 
courage and episcopal charity he gave a brilliant 
example of those qualities when in 1846, one evening, 
as he was engaged in prayer in the cathedral, he 
saved single-handed the life of a man who was at- 
tacked by three brigands. The same pope reserved 
him in petto in the Consistory of the 23d Decem- 
ber, 1839, decorated him with the purple on the 
14th December of the following year. 

When he was informed of the death of Gregory 
XVI. he at once went to Rome to take part in the 
election of the new pontiff, but all the votes were 
united for him with a marvellous promptitude, and 
he himself was elevated to the chair of Peter, How- 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. lOT 

ever, the enemies of religion and of perfect order 
soon changed into mourning the joy that was univer- 
sally felt at the announcement of such an unaccus- 
tomed event, and arousing a revolt they surrounded 
the Pope in such a way that it Avas with difficulty, and 
only by the special help of God, that he was enabled 
to escape from their hands and reach Gaeta. The 
King of Naples received him there with many marks 
of courtesy and respect. While the whole Catholic 
universe came to him to testify their feelings of ven- 
eration and to lay their offerings at his feet, he turned 
his thoughts to the evils suffered by our holy relig- 
ion, to the outraged rights of the Holy See, to the de- 
structive errors which had misled the nations ; and in 
his allocutions and apostolic letters he bore witness to 
his feelings and made known to the faithful the deplora- 
ble state of religious affairs, implored the succor of 
Catholic princes, and laid plainly before the people the 
real nature of the plans designed by the foes of the 
Church. Besides that, he set about re-establishing in 
England the ecclesiastical hierarchy, which had for 
such a long time been destroyed ; and on account of 
his wondrous piety towards the Mother of God he 
announced to the episcopate that he had ordered re- 
searches to be made for the purpose of defining her 
Immaculate Conception, and he asked them all to 
pray for that object with him, and to inform him of 
the traditions on the point which obtained in their 
respective countries. 

Brought back to Rome by Christians, amidst the 
acclama*tions of the city and of the whole world, he 
evinced no less care for the Eastern Church than 
for the Western. As in 1847, he had already re- 
established the jurisdiction of the Latm Patriarch of 
Jerusalem, and in the following year had confirmed 



102 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

the election of a Patriarch of Babylon for the Chal- 
deans ; so later on he set himself with an indefati- 
gable zeal to protect, strengthen, and unite the East- 
ern Churches, torn by schisms, disputes, and dissen- 
sions, by framing new rules for their conduct, by in- 
creasing the number of bishops, by aiding them in all 
manner of ways through his liberality, and in sending 
them even an apostolic delegate and a legate a latere. 

He left nothing undone in his efforts to sta}' the 
persecution of the Catholic religion in Russia, or at 
least to obtain its mitigation either by the conven- 
tions which he proposed, by appeals to the ministers 
of that empire, by public protests, by special letters 
to the emperor, or by sending delegates to him ; 
while during all this time he never ceased to defend 
and support the Ruthenians and to console the Poles. 
And as everywhere religious affairs were in dire 
distress, he used every diligence in stipulating with 
the greater part of the heads of nations for conven- 
tions by which the rights and liberty of the Church 
might be protected. 

He never ceased from exposing, refuting, and con- 
demning in encj^clical letters, allocutions, public dis- 
courses, letters to bishops or private persons, the 
errors which are the cause of so much evil, and not- 
ably the machinations of the freemasons. He pub- 
lished the celebrated Syllabus, which will remain for- 
ever to crush all errors ; and, finally, he convoked 
and assembled the (Ecumenical Council, so that by 
clearly setting forth and confirming the true doctrine 
as to God, the Church, and the authority and infalli- 
bility of the sovereign pontiff, no ground would be 
left for sophism. 

While he was thus engaged in the struggle against 
the kingdom of Satan, he applied himself with th§ 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. IO3 

same zeal to spread the kingdom of Christ, to en- 
liven the faith and piety of Catholics, and to furnish 
them with new celestial help. He re-established the 
ecclesiastical hierarchy in England and Holland, 
and he was considering its restoration in Scotland 
when he became the prey of death. He sent mis- 
sions to the extremities of the earth ; he approved of 
the establishment of a great number of new religious 
congregations devoted to the special necessities of 
the people ; he particularly protected the Catholic as- 
sociations instituted for the support of the Church and 
the benefit of the neighbor ; to unite more closely 
the universal Church to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, 
he gave it St. Joseph as patron saint ; among the 
Christian heroes whose acts might be an encourage- 
ment, and whose patronage might be an assistance, 
he inscribed eleven on the list of the Blessed and 
fifty-two on the list of the Saints ; and, finally, he 
increased confidence in the Mother of God and 
added to her glories by the dogmatic definition of 
her Immaculate Conception. By these cares he ex- 
panded the Church to such a degree that he had to 
add, to those already existing, twenty-nine metropoli- 
tan sees, one hundred and thirty-two episcopal sees, 
three nitllius diceceseos, three apostolic delegations, 
thirty-three apostolic vicariates, and fifteen apostolic 
prefectures. 

Although subject to a hostile domination, he 
always vigorously defended the rights of the Church ; 
with an apostolic liberty he censured the power- 
ful for their sacrilegious usurpation, and proclaim- 
ed and renewed the censures which he pronounced 
against them. He watched over the splendor 
of divine worship, and rebuilt, repaired, and orna- 
mented the temples with a royal magnificence, or 
furnished the money and the sacred ornaments for 



104 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



that purpose both at home and abroad. He pro- 
posed a new Ratio Stiidiormn for the advancement 
of true science, estabhshed Catholic universities, 
founded colleges, seminaries, and schools ; he left 
everywhere monuments of his munificence, and so 
great was his liberality that all that was offered 
to him seemed to be accepted not for himself, but 
for others. 

As he combined with all these virtues a remark- 
able gentleness and affabilit}^ he charmed the minds 
of all who approached him in a manner that increased 
the respect and devotion due to the Vicar of Jesus 
Christ, until developed into the most ardent love. 
This is shown by the addresses offered to him, by 
frequent assemblages of pilgrims, and especially the 
celebrations in the jubilee years of his priesthood, 
his episcopate, and his pontificate, Avhich furnished 
altogether unusual marks of the filial piety and warm 
affection of the entire Catholic universe. 

Sole among the popes, '-^ he sat in the chair of St. 
Peter thirty-one years, seven months, twenty-two 
days. He died at the age of eighty-six years, on the 
7th of February, of the year 1878. 

*Varying Duration of Pontificates. — Three popes died within a 
day or two after their election and before they were consecrated ; eleven 
popes reigned less than one month each ; forty-four less than one year ; 
twenty-one less than two years ; twenty-two less than three years ; nine- 
teen less than four years ; sixteen less than five years ; seventeen less 
than six years ; nine less than seven years ; seven less than eight years ; 
fifteen less than nine years ; twelve less than ten years ; fourteen less than 
eleven years ; eleven less than twelve years ; nine less than thirteen 
years ; six less than fourteen years ; seven less than fifteen years ; ten 
less than sixteen years ; one less than seventeen 5^ears ; one less than 
eighteen years ; six less than nineteen years ; three less than twenty-one 
years ; three less than twenty-two years ; two less than twenty-four 
years ; one less than twenty-five years ; and two, St. Peter and Pius IX. 
more than twenty-five years — St. Peter reigning as pontiff at Rome ex- 
actly a quarter of a century, and Pius IX. nearly thirty-two years. 



CHAPTER XIII. 



CRUX DE CRUCE. 

It is said that eight hundred years before his 
accession to the papal throne Pius IX. was styled 
" Crux de Cruce." It is not our intention to deter- 
mine whether this prophecy, commonly attributed to 
St. Malachy, Bishop of Armagh, is genuine or not. 
What we Avish to insist upon is that this motto finds 
a most striking verification in the life of the late sov- 
ereign pontiff. We need not go back to the first 
days of his pontificate, when the revolutionary party 
forced him to leave his capital, and to live an exile 
at Gaeta. We need not recall to our minds the faith- 
lessness of the Piedmontese in 1870, nor the entry of 
the Italian troops through the breaches of Porta Pia. 
All worldly possessions had no value for Pius IX. 
He deemed it but small loss to be deprived of a 
country which cost him so much trouble and anxiety. 
But Avhat he had very much at heart was the welfare 
of the Church, the independence of the Holy See, and 
the upholding of sound principles in faith and morals : 
and all these he defended ; for these he struggled in 
such a manner that, even when overpowered by ma- 
terial force, when compassed round about by false 
friends or declared enemies, he made use of the only 



Io6 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX„ 

means at his command — he protested. Upon his 
banner were emblazoned in characters of gold the 
words : ' ' Rights divine and human ; rights ecclesias- 
tical and civil. ' ' This his banner he held with a firm 
grasp ; he held it unfurled and steadfast to the end. 
Pius IX. has passed away, but his spirit will not pass 
awa)^ 

The full significance, however, of the words 
" Crux de Cruce" was revealed in a special 
manner during the last years of his life. Let us 
imagine for a moment that we are in the cabinet of 
Pius IX., and that we hear the sad tidings as they are 
pouring in from all sides. It is the New World 
Avhich first engages our attention. The Empire of 
Brazil is the theatre of an anti-Catholic revolution. 
The bishops are put in prison, the priests are sent 
into exile, for no other reason than that they 
proved true to their charge. Adjacent to Brazil is 
the Republic of Ecuador. This country, which, 
under the wise and beneficent presidency of Garcia 
Moreno, the regenerator of his native land, had be- 
come at once a model for all Christian common- 
wealths and a source of consolation to the afflicted 
pontiff, witnessed a reaction at once anti-social and 
anti-Christian. The illustrious president falls a vic- 
tim to the dagger of an assassin. And the same 
powers — the secret societies — which had directed the 
arm of the parricide, found means to pour poison 
into the chalice of the Archbishop of Quito while he 
celebrated the holy mysteries, thereby renewing a 
crime which for centuries had remained without an 
example among civilized nations. Who could pic- 
ture to himself the grief of the aged pope when he 
saw that the seed of civilization and piety, which 
these two champions of the faith had sown with so 




page 107, 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. IO9 

much labor, was rooted up and destroyed ; when he 
saw that the faithful clergy were driven from their 
flocks, and that the schools were either deserted or 
turned into nurseries of infidelity and lawlessness? 
Even in the great and free States of North America 
much was done which might fill the heart of Pius 
IX. with sorrow, and might add to his cup of bitter- 
ness. True it is that as yet no decided step has 
been taken against the Church. Still there was the 
danger to be feared from the public-school system, 
a standing evil, and had there not been a change 
for the better, the peace of the Church might 
have been threatened. However, it cannot be de- 
nied that the events which most afflicted the Vicar 
of Christ took place in the Old World. 

How many and how cruel were the persecutions to 
which the Church was subjected throughout the vast 
territories of Asia. On reading the relations of the 
missionaries, reaching us from Siam, from China 
proper, from Japan, from Cochin China, Corea, 
and Thibet, we are reminded of the bloody edicts of 
Nero and of the devastations of the Huns and the 
Tartars. Hardly had the blood of martyrs ceased to 
flow in one country when it began to be shed with 
renewed cruelty in another. The bishops were 
separated from their clergy, the priests were torn 
away from their flocks, whole villages were de- 
stroyed, entire districts were ravaged in such a man- 
ner that they retained not even so much as a trace ol 
Christianity. The path of the Catholic missionaries 
has, indeed, at all times been marked with blood. 
They go forth to pagan countries like so many 
generals, sent by their king, the pope, to make con^ 
quests for Christ and His Church. The blood which 
they shed is not that which makes orphans and wid- 



no A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

ows ; but it is their own, which, in imitation of their 
Master, they give for the salvation of those that perse- 
cute them.' Is it possible that the pope could hear all 
this and remain unmoved ? Could he see his chil- 
dren in poverty, in anguish, in torments, without 
suffering with them ? 

Turning our eyes to Europe we find that the war- 
fare waged against the Church in that part of the 
world was indeed less cruel, but far more perfidi- 
ous. Fire and sword were not put into requisition, 
but what is worse — attempts were made to poison the 
atmosphere of the Church itself, to make the practice 
of Catholic rites an offence against the state, and thus 
to bring about, under the specious pretext of patriot- 
ism, the silent but gradual and inevitable destruction 
of the Church. There is, however, one country in 
Europe which throughout the extent of its immense 
territories displayed a hatred of the Church worthy of 
the bitterest tyrants that ever persecuted the early 
Christians. The reader understands that we are 
speaking of Russia. In fact, the attitude of Russia 
towards the Church exhibited at once the Avorst traits 
of Asiatic barbarity and the malicious cunning of 
the more refined nations of Europe. It is not an 
easy thing for us to imagine the heart-rending 
grief which filled the noble pontiff at the sight of the 
outrages perpetrated upon the unoffending Poles by 
the cruel officials and the barbarous soldiery of the 
Czar. Not only were the bishops exiled to Siberia, 
and the priests either expelled from their parishes or 
incarcerated, but also the faithful were visited with 
all sorts of molestations, and tormented even unto 
death. The scenes which but a few months ago 
were enacted in Poland are of such a nature, that 
while they make us shudder with terror they at the 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



Ill 



same time recall to our minds the worst days of a 
Nero or of a Taikusama. But let us take an example. 

The inhabitants of the village of N are assembled 

in their parish jchurch to assist at divine service. On 
leaving the sanctuary they are attacked by a ruth- 
less soldiery, who had stealthily come up and posted 
themselves in the neighborhood. The people were not 
allowed to pass on, and only after all had left the 
church they were called upon, in the name of the 
Czar, to apostatize from the faith of their fathers. 
Great favors were promised to those who would com- 
ply with the imperial mandate. But all this proved 
useless, the villagers one and all crying out that 
they Avould cling to their Catholic faith. Thereupon 
a scene ensued which we would fain pass over in 
silence. The Cossacks, mounted upon their Avild 
horses, pranced in upon the people, and, without dis- 
tinction of age or sex, lashed them with the knout and 
cut them with lances, and amid the wails of the 
wounded and the dying shot them down in great 
numbers. This tragedy was repeated in many other 
places with the same unheard-of cruelty on the part 
of the Russians, and with the same heroism on the 
part of the Poles. 

In Germany the contest against the Church as- 
sumed a different character. There is in our time 
perhaps no country besides Northern Germany in 
which the Catholic Church had so rapidly developed 
all her powers, and had displayed in so striking a 
manner the divine efficacy of her organization. In- 
stitutions for the Catholic education of the higher 
classes were springing up on all sides ; the parish 
schools in the cities, as well as in the rural districts, 
were conducted in so satisfactory a manner that more 
than once they elicited the highest praises from the 



112 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

lips of the Holy Father himself. Societies for the relief 
of the poor Avere in great numbers. The young men 
of the laboring classes found in the admirable organi- 
zation of the Kolping- Verein both a means to recreate 
themselves agreeably and innocently and an oppor- 
tunity to perfect themselves in learning. The Cen- 
tral-Vcrein, too, was attended with the most happy 
results. The meetings of this association, which 
lasted for a whole week, were held yearly in one of 
the large cities of Germany. There you might see, 
side by side, the bishop and the layman, the noble- 
man and the plebeian, the philosopher and the artisan. 
How much soever these persons might differ in edu- 
cation, in social standing, in the pursuits of life, they 
were united and equal in the communion of their 
faith. In these assemblies, popular in the best sense 
of the word, the poor had an opportunity to make 
known their wants, the clergy to remind the laity of 
their duties, and all could learn what rights they had 
to claim and what good works they had to perform. 

The venerable pontiff was doomed to see all this 
either destroyed or changed in so far from its origi- 
nal purpose as to be incapable of producing any good 
fruits. The convents were suppressed one by one, 
and their inmates, models of edification and piety, 
were obliged to shake the dust of their native land 
from their feet, and to eat in tears the bread of exile. 
The aged Pope lived to see many bishops driven from 
their sees and wandering about in strange lands ; he 
himself offered shelter and hospitality to several of 
them, that he might learn from their own lips the 
sad story of the destruction wrought in their once 
flourishing dioceses. To enumerate all the cases 
in which both priests and laymen, because of their 
unswerving attachment to Rome, were sentenced to 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. II3 

pay heavy fines, or to lie like felons in the prisons of 
the state, were indeed a difficult task. 

And yet this was not all ; still greater evils were 
in store for Pius IX. Attempts were made to divide 
the seamless garment of Christ. A new heresy, 
abetted by an infidel government, sprang up in Ger- 
manv. Doellinger, together with his party of priests 
and of proud laymen, rebelled against the voice of 
the pope and of the general council, by rejecting the 
dogma of Papal Infallibility. The prevaricators 
were few in number, and in face of the loyalty 
to the Church displayed by the Catholics all over 
the world, their influence melted awaj' like snow 
before the rays of the sun ; still it cannot be denied 
that one drop of poison of this kind is enough to turn 
the whole contents of the cup into Avormwood. 

Germany, however, was not to stand alone in the 
sad renown of attempting to create a schism. If 
Germany had her Doellinger, France had her Loy- 
son, Italy her Curci, and SAvitzerland her schismatic 
parish priests. 

Where was there during the last vears of the late 
pontificate an}' countrv from which news of the most 
distressing nature did not again and again reach the 
Eternal City ? Even if we were to make abstraction 
from the world at large, and confine ourselves to the 
examination of Rome cuid its neighborhood, we 
should still find much to move a heart less delicate 
and sensitive than that of Pius IX. From the height 
of the Vatican palace he might see the devastation 
wrought in the Eternal City ; he might see religious 
men and women turned upon the streets, while their 
monasteries were changed into barracks or trans- 
formed into stables ; he might see many a pious foun- 
dation that had developed itself with the rise and the 



114 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



growth of Rome sold publicly at auction ; he might 
see many a beautiful church razed to the ground, 
while on the other hand lawlessness and irreligion 
and open blasphemy were taught as well in the 
school-room and public assembly as by the infidel 
press of the day. There stood in the centre of the 
Coliseum, that silent monument of pagan cruelty and 
of Christian heroism, a simple wooden cross, which 
for generations had been venerated alike by the in- 
habitants of Rome and by the pilgrims from distant 
lands. This touching emblem of the Crucified was re- 
moved under the very eyes of the pope and replaced 
by the statue of some revolutionary hero. And what 
was the Pope himself but a prisoner in his own pal- 
ace ? There existed, it is true, the law of guaran- 
tees, so called, protecting the Pope against any per- 
sonal insults. This law, however, inspired the pope 
with as little confidence as the power from which it 
emanated. Might not the same government which 
had made void so many treaties and had broken so 
many promises, annul this one too under any spe- 
cious pretext and for any purpose ? 

Being, therefore, perfectly conversant with the 
aims and tendencies of the revolution, and knowing 
that no compromise on eligible grounds could ever 
be effected between the Church and the Italian Gov- 
ernment, he stood, like the prophet of old, upon the 
watch-tower of the Lord, protesting by day and cry- 
ing out by night against the impious measures of the 
usurper. 

Is it not true, then, to say that during the greater 
part of the Pope's life one cross followed fast upon 
another ? But as divine providence gave our de, 
parted pontiff so large a share in the ignominy of the 
cross, it bestowed on him an equal share in its glory. 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 11/ 

For in ages past it had been foretold that the cross 
would be a sign not only of shame and of death, but 
also of salvation. Even the penitent thief caught a 
glimpse of that glory, and at the sight of it he begged 
to be admitted into the kingdom of Christ. The 
soldier who pierced the heart of Jesus with a lance 
recognized the hidden virtue of the cross, and being 
won over to it he became, as tradition tells us, a bishop 
of the Church, and died the death of a martyr. The 
centurion who, at the death of Christ, stood over 
against the cross, understood, at least to some extent, 
the mysterious greatness of the Crucified One, and 
exclaimed : Truly, this man is the Son of God." 

Throughout the pontificate of Pius IX., and more 
especially in the latter years of its duration, this 
glory of the cross was manifested in a most striking 
manner. What man of our age is there who dares 
say that he received at the hands of his contempora- 
ries as many tokens of love, respect, and veneration 
as Pius IX. ? How often was it that by one 
kind word falling from his lips, by one affectionate 
smile of his countenance, the most hardened sinners 
were converted ! More than once it happened that 
one conversation was sufficient for him to change his 
bitterest enemy into his warmest friend. Time and 
again a single look of his mild eye was enough to win 
back the erring to the path of duty and to the light of 
faith. 

While the enemies of the Church did all in their 
power to prepare new difficulties for the Holy Father, 
the children of the Church were not less ready on all 
occasions to give him new marks of love and affec- 
tion. 

Under his pontificate many tribes and nations 
hitherto strangers to Christianity were received into 



Il8 A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 

the bosom of the Church. The CathoHc nations 
themselves experienced a revival of faith and piety 
worthy of the first ages of the Church, and they 
manifested so firm an attachment to the See of Peter 
that all the machinations of crafty statesmen and all 
the seductions of infidel governments were unable to 
lessen it. 

No day commemorative of any important event in 
the life of the Pope was allowed to pass without being 
celebrated by the faithful, with all the outbursts of 
joy becoming the sentiments of loyal subjects to their 
ruler or of dutiful children to their father. Many 
occasions of this kind offered themselves. Almighty 
God had permitted the man whom he loved to live 
to an age but rarely equalled by a successor of St. 
Peter. Among the popes, Pius IX. was the only 
one in whom the well-known saying, " Non videbis 
annos Petri " — Thou shalt not see the years of Peter" 
— was not verified. This long life gave occa- 
sion to the many feasts solemnized in his honor. 
There was first the celebration of his ordination to 
the priesthood, then of his elevation to the episcopal 
dignity, and later on that of his promotion to the 
papal throne. When his election to the See of Peter 
was celebrated the pilgrims flocked to Rome from 
all parts of the world, unmindful of a raging sea, of 
dreary wastes, of dangerous precipices. And they 
deemed themselves richly rewarded if, after all their 
toils, they could but behold the face of the aged pon- 
tiff, listen to the sweet accents of his voice, and, in 
parting, receive his blessing. Where is there, in the 
whole range of history, a man, an earthly prince, of 
whom it is said that the eagerness of seeing him was 
so great among the men of his age, that they flocked 
to his capital, not only from every country of Eu- 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



119 



rope, but also from the sands of the Sahara, from the 
pampas of the New World, from the region lying 
beyond the Rocky Mountains, from the banks of the 
Ganges, and from the isles of Japan ? Did these pil- 
grims come to see a prince who equalled Solomon in 
splendor or Augustus in power ? Did they come to 
obtain rich benefices or to be raised to lucrative 
positions ? No, they came to see an aged man who 
had no kingdom, who lived in his palace more like a 
prisoner than a sovereign. Him they came to see 
and to honor, and to him they offered their presents 
as the tribute of their undying love for the Vicar of 
Christ. This loyalty of Catholics to Pius IX. is a 
jewel in his crown which many a powerful king might 
envy. 

Nor was the Pope insensible to the generosity of 
his faithful subjects. Many of his allocutions bear 
witness to the fact, and we Catholics of the present 
age may feel an honest pride in having done so 
much to sweeten the last years of his checkered life. 
He told us repeatedly not to be anxious about the 
future, nor to wish for the triumph of the Church — 
that is to say, for a triumph consisting in great ma- 
terial power, in unequalled renown for refinement ; 
because we are already celebrating a most beau- 
tiful triumph, to wit, an increase of piety throughout 
the entire body of the Church, and an intimacy and 
union between the pastors and the people worthy of 
the first ages of Christianity. 

God, who disposes all things well, had inspired 
the Catholics of some countries, in which the very 
existence of their faith was greatly endangered, with 
a manly courage and a spirit of unyielding firmness. 
And this, too, was a great source of happiness. Thus 
Belgium, for a long time fettered by a masonic legis- 



I20 



A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PIUS IX. 



lation, roused herself to action and asserted her relig- 
ious independence. The Catholics of Holland, who 
had lived for a long time in a kind of religious bond- 
age, succeeded in redeeming both their political and 
their religious freedom. Denmark and Sweden, 
after the lapse of three centuries, have in our day 
for the first time thrown open their territories to the 
zeal of the Catholic missionary. England, Protes- 
tant England, witnesses to-day a religious reaction 
which bids fair to bring back at no distant period the 
whole nation to the true fold of Christ. Not less 
remarkable, as even Protestants will admit, is the 
progress made by the Catholic Church within the 
last quarter of a century in our own country. Was 
not the knowledge of all this like a healing balm 
instilled into the heart of the much-afflicted pontiff ? 

Death, which ends all, has also put an end to his 
many sufferings, but not till he had drained the cup 
of bitterness to the dregs. He is now with the blessed 
in heaven, and his tiara is replaced by a crown of 
glory. How clearly he now understands both what 
he suffered and why he suffered ! He understands 
the wonderful ways by which God leads His Church, 
and he sees in many things, in which our troubled 
gaze perceives only the wickedness of men, the 
very wisdom and glory of the Most High. Let 
us, while fondly and sadly perusing the pages of 
his life, not forget to thank God for having given to 
our departed Father at once a measure of suffer- 
ing and a measure of joy, full, shaken down, and 
overflowing. 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE ORIGIN AND LAWS 
OF THE CONCLAVE. 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



CHAPTER I. 

THE CATHOLIC HIERARCHY. 




ESS the 
our Divine 
Redeemer would 
have in time been 
forgotten had not 
He before He as- 
cended into heaven, 
there to sit for all 
time at the right 
hand of His Father, 
founded a Church, which was to perpetuate among 
men the memory of His passion and death. Without 
such an institution there would have remained on 
earth a mere tradition of a man who during the reign 
of the Emperor Augustus lived in Judea, who 
claimed to be the Son of God, and who made good 



124 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



His word by many miracles. This tradition would 
have informed us that Christ, on account of His 
strange doctrine, fell a victim to the jealousy of His 
enemies, and that He finished His life by dying the 
death of the cross. Relying on the same tradition, 
we should have held the opinion that Christ wished to 
bring our race back to the state from which it had fall- 
en, and that He pointed out the way by which the re- 
conciliation between God and man could be effected. 

By degrees, however, the tradition Avould have 
been obscured, and before the lapse of many centuries 
it would have been impossible for the human under- 
standing to know where truth ended and error began. 

The history of the Jewish people furnishes us 
with a strong proof in favor of our hypothesis. For 
although the religious and the political institutions 
of the Israelites differed widely from those of other 
nations, and although the Hebrews had but little in- 
tercourse Avith the Gentiles, and among them the 
stream of tradition was more faithfully transmitted 
from father to son than among the European nations, 
nevertheless the entire histor}^ of the Jews is noth- 
ing but a continued record of their violations of the 
divine law. And as God wished that the light of the 
true faith should never be extinguished among them, 
He had frequent recourse to extraordinary means : 
now by raising up a prophet whom He endowed with 
supernatural powers ; now by visiting them with 
terrible calamities, from which there was neither 
escape nor relief except in their sincere return to the 
covenant of the Lord. 

The same phenomenon would no doubt have re- 
peated itself among the European nations, especially 
as the benefits of tlie redemption were to be be- 
stowed not only on one nation, but on all nations, 
and this, too, regardless of clime and national preju- 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



125 



dices. It cannot be denied, on the other hand, that, 
independently of a visible Church, God, by way of 
miracle, might have communicated to every person 
in particular the grace of redemption and of salvation. 
God, however, does not govern mankind in general 
and every individual in particular in a miraculous 
manner ; He rather wishes to manifest Himself to all 
in a way agreeable to His ordinary providence. For 
it must be borne in mind that no miracles are 
wrought or even necessary to preserve and to ex- 
plain the truths of our religion, but only to prove to 
the heathen of all lands that the Church is endowed 
with divine authority. 

If, therefore, it was the will of Almighty God 
that the work of our redemption should be both 
beautiful in theory and useful in practice, it was ab- 
solutely necessary for Him to form a society, divine 
as to the end intended, human as to its members and 
ministers, in order that all men might possess and 
might know that they possess the truth. That this 
society, this kingdom of God, may not fail of its end, 
the salvation of all, it must of necessity be a visible 
kingdom, the laws of which are sanctioned by the 
Creator Himself. 

This kingdom of Christ is the Catholic Church, 
and as every commonwealth must have powers leg- 
islative, judicial, and executive, so also has the Chris- 
tian commonwealth ; and all these powers taken col- 
lectively, or rather all the persons in whom these 
powers reside, form the Ecclesiastical Hierarchy. 

The constitution of the Church is not of to-day nor 
of yesterday. It has stood the test of ages. Many 
are the men who at returning periods would fain 
have made amendments to it, would have changed it, 
or destroyed it altogether. At one time they alleged 
for their fondness of innovation that the truths of 



126 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



salvation were not transmitted in their pristine 
purity ; at another they claimed that there should 
not be any distinction among the members of the 
Church, but that all should be considered as priests ; 
or, again, they denied the existence of Christ's visi- 
ble kingdom on earth. 

We readily admit that if these men had received 
power to fashion out a church after their own fan- 
cies they would have given it a constitution far 
different from that which Christ has given to His 
Church. But if, on the other hand, we study the 
pages of history we begin to doubt whether these 
would-be improvers upon the divine work would in 
reality have succeeded in their undertaking. ]Many 
of them, with the permission of God, were successful 
enough to carry their plans into execution. But 
history, again, tells us that they came into existence, 
that for a time they put the minds of men in com- 
motion, and that in the end they disappeared like 
dreams. The Church, on the other hand, like the 
mustard.-seed of the Gospel, Avas constant in her 
growth ; and to-day, having grown into a mighty tree, 
she spreads her branches over the whole earth, and 
is constantly adding new twigs, new blossoms, and 
new fruits. The roots of that tree go down to pur- 
gatory, while its crown, Avhich pierces the skies, 
reaches up to the throne of God ; and as the Spirit 
of the Lord rustles through its dense foliage, the 
spirits of darkness, on the one hand, shudder with 
fear, and the spirits of light, on the other, striking 
their golden lyres, sing the rapturous allelujahs ot 
heaven. 

But the testimony of history is hardly neces- 
sary to show the institutions of the Church in their 
true light. It is enough for us to know that 
Christ Himself was the founder of the Church, 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



127 



and that He promised to send to His apostles the 
Paraclete, who would instruct them in all truth, 
and that He Himself would be with them all days, 
even unto the consummation of the world. Who- 
ever is not convinced by these words — words spoken 
by the Eternal Truth itself ; whoever does not 
see in these words, and in others that are still 
clearer, and which we intend to quote later on, 
the intention of Christ to found an organization like 
the Church — must be one of those proud spirits 
who, like Lucifer, would place his throne beside the 
throne of God, or even attempt to place it higher ; 
and should such a one persist in his overweening 
pride, what wonder if his fate be likened to the fate 
of him who before the creation of the world unfurled 
the banner of rebellion in heaven ! 

Although it were time lost, as we have said, for 
the faithful to enquire how the constitution of the 
Church might have been framed differently by Al- 
mighty God, still it cannot be denied that it ought to 
be a matter of interest for every Catholic to have a 
knowledge of the working of the present hierar- 
chical system. And let it be observed that but a com- 
paratively small number of Catholics have this know- 
ledge, the generality knowing little more than the 
broad outlines of the system. Thus every Catholic 
knows that the parish priest has jurisdiction in his 
parish, the bishop over the whole diocese, and that 
the pope is the ruler of all — of the priests as well as 
of laymen. But it is one thing merely to see the 
stately edifice of the Church from the outside, as it 
were, and another to understand the principles of 
order and beauty upon which it is constructed, and 
by which it is enabled to outlast the storms of cen- 
turies and to stand before us, even to-day, in all its 



128 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



original loveliness and perfection. How is it pos- 
sible that the Church, without changing her in- 
terior organization, could adapt herself to all ages, 
to all climes, to all forms of government, and to all 
nations ; in other words, how is it possible for the 
Church to be, at one and the same time, the hand- 
maid of all by ministering to the spiritual wants of 
all, and the queen of all by obliging them to obey 
strictly all and every one of her laws ? 

Such is the problem which we intend to solve, and 
we are ready to do this as' well as our limited abili- 
ties and the narrow compass within which we must 
necessarily confine ourselves will allow. 

Let us begin with the founding of the Church by 
Christ. Christ had sent His apostles not only to in- 
struct men in the truths of salvation, but also to 
oblige them to do the works necessary for salvation. 
Hence He sent His apostles not only as preachers, 
but also as rulers and as ministers of the sacraments. 
Now as the Church is to last forever, and as the 
apostles were to live but for a limited space of 
time, their power must have been such as could be 
transmitted to others in the same manner in which 
they themselves had received it from Christ. Those 
who did receive this power were called bishops ; nor 
can any one to-day claim to be a bishop in the true 
sense of the word unless he can prove that his power 
was transmitted to him from Christ through the 
apostles by an uninterrupted succession of bishops. 
There are no bishops in the Catholic Church who 
derive their jurisdiction from any other source, and 
hence all Roman Catholic bishops are deservedly 
called the successors of the apostles. Theirs it is, 
and theirs alone, to govern and tq rule the Church of 
Christ, 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



129 



But, moreover, there never existed a perfect 
equality among the apostles themselves. Christ Him- 
self made a distinction. He told His apostles on one 
occasion that Satan had desired to sift them. Now, 
this permission was really granted to the evil one, 
and therefore it was not impossible that some would 
not stand the test. History, alas ! proves but too 
well that many a time this possibility became a 
reality. This being the case, it follows that but for 
an admirable provision of divine Providence in be- 
half of the Church, it might have happened sooner or 
later that such a confusion of ideas would have taken 
place among the faithful as to make it utterly im- 
possible for any one to know either where the true 
Church was, or what graces were granted to the 
members of that Church. But Christ did not estab- 
lish a Church which was to be tossed about by the 
whirlwind of human opinions. He therefore chose 
one man on whom He bestowed the gift of an infalli- 
ble faith, and that man Avas Peter. To Peter our Lord 
said : "I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail 
not." Hence, as far as faith is concerned, Peter 
enjoyed a privilege which was not granted to the 
other apostles. But as the powers which the apos- 
tles had received in common were to be transmitted 
to others, so also the power with which Christ dis- 
tinguished Peter from among his brethren was to be 
transmitted to his successors ; so that if at any 
time a difficulty arose in matters of faith or of mor- 
als, the bishops, as well as the priests and the laymen, 
might have recourse to the successor of St. Peter, 
and be assured that the answer received was, b}^ vir- 
tue of the words of Christ, true with the very truth 
of God, infallible with the very infallibility of God. 

But this was not the only distinction conferred 



130 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



Upon Peter by Christ. It was not the mtention of 
the Saviour of mankind to estabhsh twelve Churches, 
devoid of any other connection among themselves 
than the source from which all might if they wished 
draw the truths of faith. Satan by dint of cunning 
would very soon have succeeded in changing eleven 
of these Churches into false ones, which in their turn 
would have combated with relentless fury against 
the only true Church of Christ. Our Lord prevented 
this by appointing Peter not only as the fountain of 
faith, but also as the source of all jurisdiction. The 
words of Christ to Peter are as follows : " And thou 
confirm thy brethren." Christ teaches us here in 
express terms that the other apostles must lean upon 
Peter not only for perseverance in the true faith, but 
also for obtaining strength sufficient to withstand the 
attacks of their enemies. Nor did our Lord hide 
from them the fact that at times all the powers of 
darkness would rise up against them, and that in such 
times they would find no refuge, no security, except 
by leaning upon Peter, by believing what he be- 
lieved, by doing what he told them to do. The 
words of Christ are very clear on this point : ' ' Upon 
this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of 
hell shall not prevail against her." Whoever Avishes, 
therefore, to remain victorious over the powers of 
darkness must be steadfast in his union with the 
See of Peter. Christ, in order to rouse Peter to the 
sense of both his dignity and his responsibility, and 
also to impress upon his brethren the true char- 
acter of their dependence upon Peter, said to Peter 
in plain and open terms: " Feed my lambs, feed my 
sheep." These words reveal to us the plan on which 
Christ wished to form His Church. Peter is not 
only a source of truth to his brethren, but also a 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



source of strength ; he is bound to watch over them, 
and they in their turn are obhged to hearken to his 
voice. Peter is the shepherd aUke of the sheep and 
of the lambs, of the priests and bishops, and of the 
laymen. The successors of the other apostles are 
the shepherds of their respective flocks. Peter is 
the common pastor of the flocks and of the shepherds 
themselves. 

There are many other texts in Scripture incul- 
cating, if possible more strongly, the same doctrine. 
One of them, referring to the occasion on which 
Peter was first called to be an apostle, reads thus : 
" Thou art Simon, the son of Jonas ; thou shaft be 
called Cephas" — that is, the rock or groundwork 
upon which the whole edifice was to be built. At a 
later period our Lord returns to this idea and en- 
larges upon it, saying : " To thee I will give the keys 
of the kingdom of heaven." Now, he that has con- 
trol over the keys is the master of the house, and 
as Peter holds the keys of Christ's household, the 
Church, Peter must needs be the master at least of 
the visible Church of Christ. In the Apocalypse 
Christ appears to St. John as the great key-bearer ; 
indicating that as He Himself holds the keys of the 
kingdom of heaven, so Peter holds the same keys 
upon earth in the quality of Christ's vicar. 

Such is the original constitution which Christ 
gave to His Church ; the same it is still, and it will 
last to the end of time. 

So far we have not made any mention of the 
seventy-two disciples whom Christ gave as help- 
mates to His apostles. Do we not recognize in them 
the type of the inferior degrees of the clergy ? The 
apostles, knowing the mind of their Divine Master 
better than any others, chose, even during the first 



132 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



year of their apostolical ministry, a certain number 
of persons, whom they ordained, whom they called 
deacons, and to whom they entrusted certain special 
offices. There existed at that time in the minds of 
many a doubt whether the heathens before receiving 
baptism should be circumcised or not. The apos- 
tles met in Jerusalem in general council, and after a 
long deliberation Peter stood up and, in virtue of his 
privilege of infallibility in matters of faith, decided 
the question, and the controversy was at an end. 

That Peter, however, might have acted indepen- 
dently of the council appears from the fact that he 
had received into the Church the centurion Corne- 
lius, without obliging him to submit to the Jewish 
rite of circumcision. 

The same custom which had obtained in the days 
of the apostles is still in vigor. Whenever, owing to 
the perversity of heretics, the Church finds herself in 
a critical position, and when consequently the suc- 
cessor of St. Peter is obliged to have recourse to ex- 
traordinary measures, he first invites the successors 
of the other apostles to meet in general council, and 
there deliberates with them as to what enactments 
are likely to prove most successful. 

The pope is not obliged to proceed in this man- 
ner. Independent of any council, the pope may pro- 
nounce upon matters of faith, and be as assured of 
speaking in accordance with the eternal Truth as if 
all the bishops of the earth had been unanimous in 
the same doctrine. But as other questions besides 
those relating to matters of faith and morals are 
to be discussed — such as ecclesiastical institutions, 
changes in or additions to the laws regulating the 
external affairs of the Church — it is the part of a pru- 
dent ruler, before he gives any decision, to lend an at- 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



tentive ear to the advice of good and experienced 
men. The popes do not rule after the manner of 
tyrants, who make laws to-day and unmake them 
to-morrow, who to-day demand of their subjects 
one thing and to-morrow oblige them to the oppo- 
site. The pope was made the ruler of all for no 
other purpose than that he might be the servant of 
all. He first makes use of human means to deter- 
mine what is necessary or wholesome to the flock of 
Christ ; and only then, when all natural resources 
have proved fruitless, he m.akes use of supernatural 
ones, being firmly convinced that the assistance of 
the Holy Ghost will not permit him to go astray. 
Let him that is unwilling to believe all this, study the 
history of the last CEcumenical Council, together with 
its happy results, notwithstanding the sad forebodings 
of statesmen to the contrary. 

Concerning the organization of the Church, we 
have already mentioned the pope, the general coun- 
cils, and the apostles or, more properly, the bish- 
ops, the priests, and the deacons. All these offices 
date back as far as the days of the apostles. Nay 
more, even at that early period the foundation was 
laid for that admirable division of the Church into 
patriarchates, primacies, archbishoprics, bishoprics, 
and parishes, by virtue of which gradation the least 
member of the Church can almost as easily com- 
municate with the head of Christendom as the car- 
dinal of the pontifical palace himself. 

Peter and the other apostles were sent by Christ 
to convert the whole world. Each one might, there- 
fore, go whithersoever he wished. However, it 
could not possibly be a correct interpretation of 
Christ's will if each of them had chosen at random 
the place to which he would direct his steps, so 



134 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



that an apostle might be at Rome to-day and at 
Damascus to-morrow, thus making it impossible for 
his flock to have recourse to him in their greatest 
needs. But the apostles acted quite differently. Ac- 
cording to a venerable tradition of antiquity, they 
divided the whole known world into twelve parts, of 
which each took one for his special field of action. 
In the course of time these parts themselves proved too 
extensive, even for the zeal of an apostle. They Avere 
therefore obliged to form separate congregations, each 
of which they placed under the jurisdiction of an 
ecclesiastic endowed with the episcopal dignity. 
But as little by little the number of the faithful in- 
creased in these congregations, it was found neces- 
sary to subdivide them and to confide these subdivis- 
ions to the care of clergymen belonging to an inferior 
rank. It is in this manner that we are to understand 
the gradual formation, not onl}^ of the diocese itself 
with its actual hierarchical government, but also the 
precedence which, even at the present day, one 
bishop has over another in the same country. 

At the head of the entire Church stands the pope, 
possessing the fulness of all spiritual power. Next 
to him are the patriarchs and the primates. In olden 
times the title of patriarch was restricted to those 
bishops who filled the sees of Antioch, Rome, and 
Alexandria. Later on, some other sees Avere added 
to this number — for instance, Jerusalem, Constanti- 
nople, and Venice. It must, however, be remarked 
that the patriarchs at present do not enjoy any special 
privileges, nor do they possess a higher jurisdiction 
than the other bishops ; their title being merely 
honorary, while during the middle ages much politi- 
cal influence was connected with this dignity. The 
same may be said concerning primacies. The pri- 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



mate of any country holds the first rank among the 
bishops of that nation. Thus there was a primate of 
Germany, of England, of Ireland, and of Poland. 

The following suggestions about the government 
of the Church are of vital importance. The whole 
domain of the Church is divided into ecclesiastical 
provinces. At the head of each province stands the 
metropolitan or archbishop. He ranks foremost 
among the bishops of that province, and in provincial 
councils he occupies the first seat ; besides, he enjoys 
some privileges which are not granted to his breth- 
ren in the episcopate ; and in matters of jurisdiction 
he is, as it were, the connecting link between them 
and the Roman court. Still, he does not receive any 
higher ordination than the other bishops, nor is he 
placed over them in such a manner as to have, strictly 
speaking, jurisdiction over them ; he is rather " pri- 
mus inter pares, " the first among his equals, having 
like the others to attend to the government of a dio- 
cese, which by way of distinction is called archdio- 
cese. Thus the Archbishop of Baltimore is, indeed, 
the metropolitan of the ecclesiastical province of the 
same name ; and yet we cannot say that the dio- 
cese of Richmond belongs to the Archdiocese of 
Baltimore, because they form two distinct parts of 
the same ecclesiastical province. 

The provinces of the Church, then, are divided into 
dioceses, at the head of each of Avhich is the bishop, 
holding, as a general rule, the same authority and 
power over his diocesans as the pope exerts over 
the entire Church. We say that this holds good as a 
general rule, because the case may present itself in 
which the pope, by virtue of his supreme authority 
and jurisdiction^ would find himself obliged to inter- 



136 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



fere with this general mode of proceeding, and to put 
limits to the action of a bishop. 

The diocese m its turn is subdivided, at least in 
the Catholic countries of Europe, into deaneries, 
headed by the dean ; while the deaneries themselves 
are again divided into parishes, presided over by the 
pastors or parish priests. 

To sum up what has been said till now : We say 
that the ruler of the entire Church is the pope ; that 
the ruler of an ecclesiastical province is called arch- 
bishop ; that the ruler of a deanery is called dean ; and 
the parish priest is intrusted with the care of a parish. 

Besides, it must be borne in mind that some of the 
offices mentioned are of such a nature as to make it 
impossible for any single person to fill them to satisfac- 
tion. Hence it is customary that the bishops, who, 
generally speaking, are burthened with a variety of 
duties, have a number of ecclesiastical persons, such 
as coadjutors and vicars-general, attached to their 
persons, who in one way or another act in the name 
and with the authority of the bishop himself. On 
the same principle we explain the introduction into 
the diocese not only of the cathedral chapters and of 
the vicars for simplifying the government of the dio- 
cese ; but also of chaplains for assisting parish priests 
in discharging their duties. In most dioceses the 
ecclesiastical corporations that help the bishop in the 
government of the diocese have at the same time 
the privilege to elect a new bishop whenever such an 
election is necessary. 

Now the sovereign pontiff in his quality of ruler 
over the whole Church, having under his jurisdicr 
tion not only all the flocks, but also all the pastors 
of the flocks, must of necessity have at his side a 
great number of men, and even gf corporations q{ 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



men, for the purpose of managing affairs ecclesiastic 
with prudence and promptness. During the early 
ages the pope when pressed with business had re- 
course to the principal clergymen in and about 
the city of Rome. And thus as the bishops had 
their cathedral chapters, the popes in the course 
of time created for themselves an organization con- 
sisting at first of the suburban bishops and of the 
Roman priests and deacons. At the present day 
these counsellors of the pope are known by the name 
of cardinals, and are called, in accordance with their 
grade of ordination, either cardinal bishops, cardinal 
priests, or cardinal deacons. This dignity, at first 
granted to the Roman clergy only, was gradually 
extended to other princes of the Church, irrespective 
of nationality. Although this latter class of cardi- 
nals, because of their duties at home and the distance 
of their sees from Rome, do not take any active part 
in the government of the Church, they have never- 
theless a right to be present at the conclave, and to 
vote for a new pope. 

In the same proportion in which the Church ex- 
tended her territory and multiplied the number of 
her children, the ecclesiastical government became 
more and more complicated. Hence the cardinals, 
who for a long time, as has been stated, were chosen 
from among the bishops, deans, and parish priests 
of Rome, could not possibly at one and the same 
time share in the general government of the Church, 
and attend to their parishes, deaneries, or dioceses. 
They therefore, although preserving their ancient 
title of bishops, deans, or priests, were relieved of 
their pastoral charges, and resided under the im- 
mediate supervision of the pope in the Lateran 
palace, or, later, in the Vatican. In this manner the 



138 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



College of Cardinals resembled very much the ca- 
thedral chapter which we mentioned above ; for, as 
the members of the latter, upon the decease of their 
bishop, take the government of the diocese into their 
hands, so also do the cardinals, whenever the Holy 
See is vacant, govern the whole Church until a new 
pope has been appointed. 

For the better management of affairs, every one 
of the cardinals (whose number may not exceed 
seventy-two) is assigned to one or more of the 
many congregations of cardinals. Thus some cardi- 
nals belong to the Congregation of the Index, whose 
duty it is to examine books and pamphlets in order 
to decide whether they are beneficial or prejudicial to 
the faith and morals of the faithful. Others, again, be- 
long to the Congregation of the Propagation of Faith, 
whose office it is to watch over the interests of the 
Church in missionary countries. Then, again, as oc- 
casions offer, the pope may erect new congregations, 
which, however, are dissolved as soon as the diffi- 
culties in question have disappeared. Every one of 
these congregations requires a great number of per- 
sons, who, although not members of the congrega- 
tion, are employed either as counsellors, as transla- 
tors, or as clerks. 

Thus far we have given the reader the broad out- 
lines of the system by which the Church is governed. 
Hasty as our sketch has been, we trust that it will 
prove sufficient for the reader to understand how, 
under such a constitution, it happens that the mem- 
bers and the head of the Church are intimately linked 
together, and that each thought and each word pro- 
ceeding from the head is communicated to all the 
members even to the remotest countries. 

Still we must confess that our picture is far from 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 1 39 

being complete. It represents the Church as she is 
governed in times of peace and prosperity. But as 
the Church on earth with good reason is called the 
Church militant, we cannot be surprised at seeing 
that the periods of her prosperity are but short and 
few, while the periods of her struggles and of her 
sufferings are long and many. In fact, it may safely 
be asserted that ever since the coming down of the 
Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost there has not 
been a time in which the Church enjoyed perfect 
peace throughout all the parts of her vast domain. 
There are even now mighty kingdoms in which the 
Church of God and her institutions are hardly 
known ; there are extensive territories in which the 
Church is hardly tolerated ; there are powerful na- 
tions that persecute the Church in the most cruel 
manner. It is evident that, under such circumstan- 
ces, the Church finds herself straitened, and that she 
is unable to display all the beauty and the strength 
inherent to her wonderful organization. All these 
countries stand under the immediate jurisdiction of 
the pope. It is the pope himself who sends the mis- 
sionaries ; he selects for them a central place from 
which the whole country is evangelized. In this 
manner the missions apostolic are formed, which in 
the course of time are raised to the rank of dioceses. 
During the pontificate of Pius IX. it happened re- 
peatedly that apostolic missions were erected into 
regular dioceses — as, for instance, in England and in 
Holland. 

This is not all. It may occur that the maintaining 
of the regular hierarchy in a certain country would 
entail much suffering and great molestations on the 
ecclesiastical dignitaries. In such cases it is but 
reasonable that the pope should change the hierarchy 



140 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



into an apostolic mission, as was the case in England 
during the reign of Queen Elizabeth. How easy 
would it have been for the English pursuivants to 
apprehend a bishop who is obliged to remain at his 
see, or a parish priest who is not allowed to leave his 
parish. The pope, therefore, withdrew all this, and 
in its stead introduced the missionary system by 
sending zealous priests into the realm, to whom he 
granted full powers, and who, under various dis- 
guises, went through the land in all directions, 
strengthening the faltering spirits of the Catholics, 
administering the sacraments, exposing themselves to 
all manner of vexation, and not unfrequentl}^ sealing 
their faith by shedding their blood under the most 
horrible and revolting torments. The Tower of Lon- 
don might bear terrible witness to what we say. 

But even without such occasions the pope, in vir- 
tue of his plenary power, resorts at times to extraor- 
dinary means. The bishops, for example, exercise 
jurisdiction over the whole extent of their dioceses ; 
yet the pope has often exempted certain religious 
orders from this diocesan government. 

A more striking instance of this is furnished by 
the ecclesiastical organization of the Prussian army. 
At the desire of the crown, the pope constituted the 
entire army, so long as the soldiers remained under 
the flag, a separate diocese, at the head of which 
stood an army-bishop ; so that wherever any corps 
or regiment of the army might be stationed, its mem- 
bers were subject not to the ordinary of the local dio- 
cese, but to their own military bishop. 

Thus we see all things ordered for the best in the 
constitution of the Church. We have a permanent 
order, without which no organization can preserve 
its living action. But along with that order we have 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



141 



a freedom of action, which, without disturbing the 
former, is competent to provide for all extraordinary 
occurrences. This wise union of order and liberty 
plainly shows that a more than human wisdom pre- 
sides over the Church, since that alone could create 
an institution which far outstrips the duration of any 
human work. He alone who created the world 
could create a Church whose birth dates back to the 
beginning of time, and whose mission will end only 
with the life of the last of our race. 



CHAPTER 11. 



AN HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE PAPAL ELECTION. 

From what has been said of the office of the pope 
in the Church, it evidently follows how important it 
is that the See of Peter should be filled by a worthy 
successor. It is true that this see is surrounded by 
divine safeguards ; and we know that, even if it were 
held by the greatest of sinners, or by the man of the 
most limited natural ability, no harm could come 
from this to the preservation and propagation of the 
faith. Peter would still speak through the mouth of 
his successor, and as Peter's faith cannot fail, we 
should have the assurance that the saving truth re- 
mained unimpaired. And Christ, who to the con- 
summation of ages will never for a single day aban- 
don His Church, would shield her in her greatest 
need with His almighty hand, so that the gates of hell 
should never prevail against her. 

But this divine guarantee could not be held as an 
encouragement to human indifference. It would be 
a wrong to the majesty of God did men suppose that 
this divine promise dispensed them from prudent 
precaution, or that it was of no consequence who was 
placed upon the throne of St. Peter. As the pope 
himself, though infallible in teaching, may not ne- 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



gleet the thorough and careful discussion of questions 
proposed for his doctrinal decision, so may not men 
appoint as the representative of God one of whose 
worthiness they have not taken sufficient proof. 
Even the best will always be, in comparison with 
God, an unworthy representative ; and when the 
sovereign pontiffs style themselves so, they use no 
meaningless phrase, but speak a truth well known to 
themselves as well as to those whom they address. 
Men cannot offer to God any thing better than they 
possess ; but they are bound to give Him the best 
and the worthiest. To offer less or to offer any thing 
in a slovenly manner, would be a crime against In- 
finite Majesty. 

But such things have happened in the course of 
ages ; it has happened that insufficient care was 
taken, that men were ignorant of the unworthiness of 
the one chosen, and this ignorance was sometimes 
wilful, sometimes unwilful. In such cases God still 
kept His word ; the faith never wavered at Rome ; 
and never, in the lapse of two thousand years, has 
a pope defined cx cathedra a point of doctrine which 
a succeeding pope found it necessary to condemn. 
During the same two thousand years numberless 
scientific systems have been set up and overturned 
again, but never a papal definition. The gates of 
hell have never prevailed against the Church in the 
cases alluded to ; but she has suffered and suffered 
severely whenever they occurred. Happily the cases 
were rare ; and the great majority of the popes, how- 
ever unworthy they were in comparison with God, 
were, when compared with men, pious, virtuous, and 
wise. No dynasty on earth can show so long a line of 
exemplary princes, so few unworthy rulers as the chair 
of Peter, and in moral greatness, in masterly abihty of 



144 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



government, many a pope stands higher than the 
greatest of other rulers. 

For these quahties, however desirable they may 
be, and however suited to the sublime dignity of the 
papacy, we have no divine security. And for this 
reason, but especially because men owe it to the di- 
vine sanctity and majesty, it was necessary to sur- 
round the papal election with all possible precau- 
tions, so that none but the most worthy and most 
excellent should be chosen. 

Accordingly, the Church has in all ages bestowed 
the utmost care on this important act ; and the sys- 
tem is no mere mass of ceremonies or formalities, but 
is the result of the serious study of eighteen centu- 
ries. Wherever a deficiency appeared it was sup- 
plied, and all measures had no other end in view but 
that the electors should be irreproachable, that they 
should be free from all external influence, and should 
follow only their own conscience in the election. 

A very brief historical view of the matter will 
suffice to prove this. In the earliest ages there Avas 
no reason to require any difference in the elections of 
popes or bishops. There was no fear that any one 
would covet this dignity through worldly motives ; 
for how greatly soever the early pontiffs were re- 
vered by the faithful, yet they knew that in accept- 
ing this pre-eminence, they had to sacrifice whatever 
might render life pleasant or desirable ; and that they 
must look forward to a bloody martyrdom in the end. 
There was then no earthly inducement to stir up the 
ambition for the tiara in the first popes. And if the 
candidate had none, much less can we find it in the 
electors. They had nothing to offer and they had 
nothing to hope from the one whom they might elect. 
All Christendom in those days looked forward to 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



martyrdom, and, under such circumstances, men are 
necessarily virtuous and inaccessible to unworthy mo- 
tives. Hence, in a vacancy of the Holy See, the 
bishops of the sees near Rome assembled, and, to- 
gether with the clergy and faithful people of the capi- 
tal, agreed on the choice of a successor. There was 
no definite form of election to be observed under 
pain of nullity. When the choice had been deter- 
mined, the newly-elected was consecrated by the 
Bishop of Ostia, the seaport of Rome. 

This continued until the Roman emperors became 
Christians. Thenceforth the emperors became the 
protectors of the Church, and as such they received 
certain rights and privileges. They began by point- 
ing out, in cases of difficulties arising out of a multi- 
plicity of candidates, none of whom could secure a 
majority of votes, which of them should succeed to 
the chair of Peter. The papacy now began to exer- 
cise an external influence, and then the dangers also 
came to light, which did not exist in times of bloody 
persecutions. It is true that time was needed to de- 
velop these dangers and to strengthen the Imperial 
influence, until at length it became necessary to op- 
pose it, and to erect such barriers against it as would 
restore and preserve the ancient freedom of election. 

When Odoacer had secured to himself the posses- 
sion of Italy, he claimed the same rights which the 
emperors had exercised before him ; and Theodoric 
the Great, King of the Ostrogoths, who ruled in 
Rome after him, went even further, by appointing 
one pope, Felix III., by his sole vote. His succes- 
sors were more modest ; they, however, required the 
election to be referred to them for approval ; they 
issued an edict of ratification, for which a handsome 
tribute was expected for the royal treasury. 



146 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



In later times the eastern Emperor Justinian re- 
conquered Italy, and then the right of approving the 
papal election was vested in him and his successors. 
The emperor's representative held his court at Ra- 
venna under the title of Exarch ; and this officer was 
to receive immediate notice of a vacancy in the Ro- 
man See, whilst the decree of election was to be 
always subject to the approval of the emperor. The 
tax on the ratification was first remitted under Con- 
stantine Pogonatus, in 680, and as the Imperial power 
gradually sank lower and lower, the papal election 
became more and more free. 

But now another danger appeared. Parties had 
been formed at Rome by the various nationalities of 
which its population consisted ; and these brought 
their influence to bear, sometimes in unlawful ways, 
on the election of the pontiff. To counteract this, 
protection was again sought from the princes ; but 
this time not from the court of Constantinople, which 
had lost its hold on western Europe, but from the Carl- 
ovingian princes, especially from Charlemagne, Avho 
had restored the empire in the West. Thenceforth 
the election was always to be held in presence of the 
imperial ambassadors ; a decree not invariably ob- 
served, yet giving a recognized right which, on the 
dissolution of the Carlovingian Empire, passed over 
to Germany. 

The German emperors used the power with all 
the arbitrary violence of the worst times under the 
eastern Csesars. At first they stretched their privi- 
lege so far as simply to name the pope themselves 
without any election. Thus Henry III. alone ele- 
vated three German bishops in succession to the 
papacy. It is granted that he was happy in his 
choice in each case, and hence the arbitrary use of 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



his Imperial privilege had no bad consequences for 
the Church. But that was not a condition worthy of 
God's Vicar on earth ; and there Avas no assurance 
that all future elections or nominations would be 
equally fortunate, or that future emperors would be 
equally favorably disposed towards the Church. A 
serious danger therefore threatened the freedom of 
the Church ; and since she cannot announce the truth 
while she is the handmaid of earthly princes, she was 
threatened even in regard to the fufilment of her 
mission. And the fact that the emperor's choice 
fell only on worthy incumbents only enhanced the 
danger ; as this circumstance seemed to approve a 
measure which attacked the very heart of the Church. 
But God has promised that the gates of hell should 
not prevail, and therefore, as this state of affairs was 
a real danger to the Church, He shielded her with 
His almighty hand. From that era dates the re- 
action against every external influence, a reaction 
Avhich has steadily gained ground even to our own 
times. 

It was the lot of Pope Nicholas II. to inaugurate 
the movement for the freedom of the papal election. 
In a decree, " De Electione Pontificis," published in 
1059, he points out the evils which had hitherto ham- 
pered the election. He mentions even bribes as hav- 
ing been used by ambitious candidates or their sup- 
porters. x-\s precautions for the future, he ordains 
that the cardinal bishops shall first consult together 
about the future pope ; then the cardinal clerics, and 
finally the lower clergy and the people shall give 
their vote. The pope thus chosen shall be acknowl- 
edged as legitimate by all under pain of excommuni- 
cation. It is evident that nothing new was hereby 
ordained, if we except perhaps the clause that the 



148 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



bishops should have the first voice. All the rest is 
nothing but the method of election which had been 
followed from the earliest days. And even the right 
thus given to the cardinal bishops can hardly, in 
practice, be considered as a new institution. For, in 
the early times, by reason of the bloody persecutions 
of the Church, there Avas in all its members a won- 
derful unanimity, which was to some extent lost in 
quiet and peaceful ages. Christians then were one 
great family, all the members of which were equally 
heroic in self-sacrifice aiid generosity. With this 
feeling of fellowship was united the most unlimited 
reverence for those who, in regard to this family, 
held the office of fathers. When, therefore, the chair 
of Peter was vacant, the next in authority Avere the 
cardinal bishops ; and hence it naturally devolved 
upon them to seek for the worthiest successor ; from 
them all others expected to receive advice. Pope 
Nicholas, therefore, in decreeing that they should 
first consult together, only gave a public sanction to 
what had been observed from the earliest days, in 
almost every election, as something flowing from the 
very nature of things. 

From this decree it is evident that there is no 
longer question of Imperial interference in the elec- 
tion, much less of a nomination of the pope by the 
emperor. It is true that the pope wished to see a 
due regard shown to the prince (Henry IV. was still 
young at the time and not yet on the throne) ; but 
even the words of the decree, " salvo debito honore 
et reverentia, " plainly show that the pontiff meant 
only that regard which was due to the ruler of Ger- 
many as protector of the Church. It was then rather 
an instruction to the electors than a privilege for the 
prince. They were not to forget the reverence and 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



149 



honor due to the monarch. That nothing more was 
intended is shown by other clauses of the same docu- 
ment, which may be viewed as innovations, the ob- 
ject of which was to guard the election against the 
power of the emperors as well as against the action 
of factions in Rome. Thus, the pope ordains that 
should an election be impossible at Rome, the cardi- 
nals shall have the right to elect elsewhere. He 
ordains moreover that if circumstances prevent the 
solemn inauguration of the newly elected pontiff, 
this shall not be a hindrance to him in the full use of 
his power to govern the Church. The elect was 
pope by the fact of his legitimate election, and against 
this no protest could be admitted. 

This decree has been to this day the groundwork 
of the papal election. In unessential matters some 
alterations have been made by new regulations or the 
abrogation of old, as the times seemed to require ; 
but the main point remained firm, that no worldly 
power has the right of imposing a head on the 
Church in any form or under any pretext. 

By degrees the method of electing was so modi- 
fied that it was entrusted to the cardinals alone ; and 
hence the preliminary council of cardinal bishops was 
abrogated as no longer needed, now that a fixed elec- 
toral college existed, composed exclusively of men oi 
the greaest Avisdom and virtue. Moreover, the cus- 
tom was introduced and became a law that the pope 
should be elected from the college of cardinals. This 
had been otherwise in ancient ages, when men were 
sometimes chosen who were not even priests, but 
who were, of course, first ordained before they could 
exercise the functions of their high spiritual office. 
We know that the apostles raised laymen to the epis- 
copate. St. Ambrose was chosen bishop of Milan 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



even before his baptism. It was only after his elec- 
tion that he was baptized, then received the lower 
orders, and eight days afterwards was consecrated 
bishop. The groundwork of the hierarchy was laid ; 
but the solid, well-planned edifice required time for 
its erection. Hence the decree of Pope Nicholas still 
permitted, in case of necessity, the choice of an eccle- 
siastic from another church, that is, of one not a 
member of the college of cardinals. 

Finally, the manifold relations which existed be- 
tween the pope and Catholic kingdoms gave origin to 
a certain negative influence exercised by the latter on 
the election. We have seen that Nicholas required 
a due regard for the secular power. But care was 
taken that this should never again lead to the abuses 
which had formerly existed. No secular power was 
to choose the pope ; this was and remained the office 
of the cardinals. It was, however, in the interest of 
the Church that the future pope should be one against 
whose person there would be no grounded or un- 
grounded prejudice in this or that great nation. 
Now, that the electors might know who Avould be 
unacceptable to one or other of the Catholic powers, 
the privilege of a veto was granted to Austria, 
France, and Spain. But this veto had not the mean- 
ing, as has frequently been asserted, that these na- 
tions, or any one of them, could protest against an 
election once made, or render it null. This would 
have been a direct return to the old abuses, which it 
was the object to ward off. Indeed, the difficulties 
would only have been multiplied. For, instead of 
one, there were three to control the choice ; and not 
unfrequently, by reason of conflicting political inter- 
ests, a candidate would have been most acceptable to 
one government against whom another entertained 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



the most unconcealed opposition. The veto then was 
something very different from this. It meant only 
that each of those nations might depute one of the 
cardinals to point out the one whom it did not 
desire to be elected. But this was to be done before 
the election, in order to hinder the choice. A pro- 
test against one already chosen was not allowed. 
Besides, each of the governments could make use of 
its veto but once, so that at the most only three car- 
dinals were excluded. It was of course permitted to 
each of the powers to name several persons, whose 
elevation would be less agreeable to it, with the un- 
derstanding that the cardinal who represented its in- 
terests could use the veto against any one of them, 
should he prove a likely candidate during the con- 
clave. Once that this veto had been pronounced 
against any candidate, the privilege was at an end, 
and could not be used against any other in the 
same election. In this manner it was sought to 
observe all due regard towards the great Catholic 
nations, whilst, on the other hand, the freedom of the 
election was secured. This privilege granted to the 
three leading Catholic governments was termed the 
" exclusiva. " But even this concession does not 
constitute a formal right to be maintained against the 
Church, or to which she would consider herself 
bound to yield unconditionally through a sense of 
moral obUgation. It is nothing more than a grant or 
concession, grounded on motives of prudence. If a 
Pope chose to abolish this veto, it would cease ; and 
if a Pope were elected over the veto, he would still be 
Pope. But this Avill hardlv happen ; for at Rome 
such privileges are held sacred, even though there is 
no strict obligation to regard them. 

The formalities and ceremonies connected with 



152 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



the papal election are the work of a thousand years. 
It would exceed the limits of our space to give a full 
account of the origin, the changes, and the develop- 
ment of these formalities. We must content our- 
selves in this, as in other portions of our task, with 
merely stating in general terms the principles on 
which the election is based. In this respect it will 
suffice to explain how the choice is made according to 
laws in vigor at the present time. 

The nature of the subject suggests its division 
into three parts : 

The first part includes the preliminary steps until 
the cardinals enter into conclave. 

The second regards the election itself in conclave 
which ends with the conclave itself. 

The last part explains the acts that take place im- 
mediately after the election and until the government 
of the Church is restored to its usual form. 

Before we pass to the development of these 
points, we must remark that, OAving to peculiar cir- 
cumstances, the papal election cannot at present be 
conducted in strict accordance Avith the method 
demanded by the usuages and laws of the Church. 
The presence of the Piedmontese in Rome may yet 
necessitate other modifications. But we pay little 
heed to this ephemeral circumstance. In describing 
the papal election, we do not intend to consider 
merely how this or that pope was elected : this be- 
longs to the historian ; but we describe the grand 
acts and forms which, in the intention of the Church, 
should accompany the election. If now and then, in 
consequence of the rising of some particular political 
star, some of the prescriptions can be observed only 
in their spirit and not in their letter, we may be 
grieved at this misfortune ; but we must not forget 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



that political stars rise and fall, and the everlasting 
Church of God outlives them all. 

It Avas for the purpose of preparing the reader so 
that he might be less sensibly affected by the fact that 
the conclave has not now its full liberty of action, 
that Ave insisted in this chapter on the immovable 
principles on which the election of a pontiff must pro- 
ceed. Whatever may be hindered by the pressure of 
political power, it remains always true that he is our 
pope whom the cardinals of the Holy Roman Church 
have chosen. God has stood by His Church in the 
past ; He will not desert her now. 



CHAPTER III. 



PART I. — THE PRELIMINARY STEPS. 

We must here repeat that we describe the papal 
election according to the laws of the Church ; not 
the modifications enforced by a temporary pressure. 
How far such pressure may prevail we are not able 
to foresee ; but we owe this confidence to God, that 
such forced modifications will never pass into recog- 
nized ecclesiastical law ; that after the days of gloom 
the sun will again shine on the Church, and then the 
venerable ancient institutions will return to their pris- 
tine vigor. 

Here, then, we consider the election as it ought to 
be ; we suppose the Pope to be in possession of his 
legitimate rights, spiritual and temporal ; and there- 
fore that he is the ruler of Rome. For this he will 
surely be once more, after the present short-lived 
usurpation of his dominions by the kingdom of Italy. 
In order to include all that is connected with this part 
of our subject, we must go back to the last moments 
of the dying Pope. 

It need hardly be said that, as soon as the physi- 
cians declare that the life of the Pope is in serious dan- 
ger, he receives the last sacraments according to the 
ritual of the Roman Pontifical. For this purpose he 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



summons the cardinals into his presence, begs their 
forgiveness, commends to them his household, and 
gives them all instructions which he may deem nec- 
essary in the interest of the Church. He dismisses 
them with the apostolical benediction. 

The Confessor, the Chamberlain, and the domestic 
prelates remain with the Pope, and when it becomes 
evident that death is approaching, one of the prelates 
again and again presents to him the crucifix to be 
kissed. The officers of the Sacred Penitentiary are 
summxoned to recite the Recommendation for the 
Dying and the Penitential Psalms ; and this is con- 
tinued till the Pope has breathed his last. 

Hereupon notice of the death is given to the Car- 
dinal-Chamberlain of the Roman Church. This func- 
tionary, vested in purple robes and accompanied by 
the domestic chamberlains, approaches the bed of the 
Pope and calls him aloud three times by his baptismal 
and family names. Only then, when the notary of 
the apostolic chamber has been witness that no an- 
swer is returned to this threefold call, a declaration 
of the Pope's death is drawn up in legal form. The 
cardinal then demands of the chief chamberlain of the 
late Pope the Fisherman's Ring, with which papal 
briefs are sealed ; and receives from the Prodatarius 
and the Vice-Chancellor of the Roman Church the 
seals for the bulls and dispensations. These are then 
destroyed. 

Meanwhile the relatives of the late pontiff, who 
may have resided in the palace, and the Cardinal-Pro- 
tector leave the premises with what belongs to them. 
The Cardinal-Chamberlain then takes formal posses- 
sion of the palace and orders an inventory of all that 
it contains. 

Finally, the remains of the Pope are intrusted to 
the clergy of St. Peter's Basilica, who cause the 



156 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



body to be embalmed. The entrails, inclosed in a 
sealed vessel, are taken in a closed chariot to the 
Church of Sts. Vincent and Anastasius, where they 
are buried after the usual funeral absolution. The 
body of the Pope is vested in the pontifical robes, 
the tiara is placed on the head and a chalice in the 
hands ; and thus he is laid out. 

Besides the above dispositions, which may be 
called internal, other measures are taken simultane- 
ously, the object of which is to secure the public 
tranquillity. For the Pope's death has, on some oc- 
casions, given rise to disturbances, and it became 
necessary to prevent the movements of unruly par- 
ties, which were doubly unbecoming at so sad a mo- 
ment. On this account it was prescribed that the 
Cardinal-Chamberlain, in concert with the command- 
ant of the troops, should make such arrangements as 
were needed. The gates and other important posts 
are guarded by stronger detachments than usual, and 
patrols are sent through the several wards of the 
city. These measures having been taken to secure 
the public peace, the cardinal, escorted by the Swiss 
Guards, makes a tour through the city in his state 
carriage. "When he sets out the great bell of the 
capital is tolled as for a funeral. The other bells are 
tolled in the same manner, and the death of the Pope 
is then made publicly known. 

Simultaneously with this solemn procession, the 
Cardinal-Chamberlain takes command of the govern- 
ment during the vacancy of the papal throne. As 
soon as the bells are tolled all the courts are closed, 
the chanceries cease the writing of bulls, and all ordi- 
nary congregations of cardinals are suspended. The 
Chief-Penitenitary alone, who exercises spiritual juris- 
diction in cases of papal reservation continues in the 
discharge of his office. 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



The Cardinal-Chamberlain is assited in the gov- 
ernment by the respective seniors of the cardinal- 
bishops, priests, and deacons, as the supreme council 
of State. These, however, remain in office but three 
days, after which they are succeeded by the next in 
seniority, and so on till the new Pope is elected. 
Furthermore, the Cardinal-Chamberlain is required 
to summon all the cardinals in Rome to a consulta- 
tion on the necessary provisions for the time of the 
vacancy ; and this before the end of the day on which 
the Pope expired, or on the following day in case the 
Pope died in the evening. The Roman Senate is also 
assembled and exhorted to assist in preserving order 
in the city. In this manner all is attended to that may 
be necessary under the circumstances. 

The first act of the interregnum is an act of grace. 
Criminals under confinement for minor offences are 
set free, and prisoners for debt are discharged. All 
this is done on the day of the late Pope's decease, or 
on the next day. 

We now return to the remains of the pontiff. The 
first act after the publication of the Pope's death is 
the solemn laying out of his body. His people's 
pious duty is to gaze for the last time on the face of 
their ruler, and hence, after the expiration of twenty- 
four hours from the death, the body, vested in the 
white soutane, the mozzetta, and the camauro rosso," 
is laid on a bed of state, where it remains till the 
third day. Near it are placed four lighted tapers ; 
two of the Noble Guard keep watch, and some 
members of one of the penitential confraternities 
kneel in prayer for the departed soul. This takes 
place in an ante-chamber of the palace, and all that 
wish are admitted. When the Pope has died at the 
Vatican, his body is next carried to the Church of St. 
Peter ; but when his death has occurred in the Quiri- 



158 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



nal, the remains are first transferred to the Vatican, 
in solemn procession, under military escort. The 
hearse is covered with red cloth ; it is drawn by two 
snow-white mules caparisoned with crimson gold- 
embroidered trappings, and in front of it walk the 
brethren of the penitential confraternities with 
torches. The corpse is vested, as was said, for the 
exposition, and the face is uncovered. Thus the 
train moves slowly towards the Vatican, to the sound 
of muffled trumpets and the tolling of bells, till it 
rests at the foot of the stairway of Constantine. 
Four of the brethren then carry the corpse into the 
Sistine Chapel, where it is clad in full pontifical robes, 
and again remains lying in state through the night. 
Lights burn around the couch as before, the brethren 
recite their prayers, and the Noble Guard keep watch. 

On the following morning all the cardinals assem- 
ble, with the clergy of St. Peter's, in the Sistine 
Chapel. The papal choir sings the Response, 
" Subvenite Sancti," the Pater Noster is recited, the 
corpse is sprinkled with holy water, and, lastly, is 
taken into the Basilica. 

Here, too, everything is prescribed to the minutest 
details. The clergy of St. Peter's, preceded by the 
cross-bearer, accompany the procession with lighted 
torches. The bier is borne by eight priests, and 
eight more hold the edges of the pall. The Swiss 
Guard and the Noble Guard surround it, and the 
cardinals follow. In this manner the train moves into 
the nave of the church, where the bier is set down. 

The corpse is then once more placed on a bed of 
state, and again the absolution is pronounced over it. 
The cardinals retire, and the remains are taken to the 
Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament, where they lie in 
state during the day. This chapel is enclosed by a 
railing, which prevents access to it. But the body 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



is so placed that the feet extend beyond the railing, so 
that the faithful may kiss them. It is understood that 
the usual guards are stationed to keep watch over the 
remains. 

As the evening approaches, the cardinals again 
assemble in the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament, for 
the purpose of carrying the corpse into the Chapel 
of the Choir on the opposite side of the Basilica, 
where it is to be enclosed in the coffin. This is done 
in solemn procession, whilst the Miserere is chanted. 
For the third time the absolution is performed by an 
archbishop, and in presence of the entire College 
of Cardinals. 

After this the corpse is laid in a coffin of cypress- 
wood, and with it are deposited as many medals of 
gold, silver, and copper as were the years of the 
Pope's reign. These medals are placed in three 
purses. The face of the corpse is then covered with 
a white veil, and the whole body with a red cloth 
bordered with ermine. The coffin is closed and en- 
cased in a second casket of lead, which bears an in- 
scription and the arms of the deceased. The inscrip- 
tion consists of the name and age of the Pope, the 
place and time of his death, and the length of his 
reign. The following is its usual form : 



Mensium, 



D. O. M. 

Papa, Aetatis annorum 
. . Dierum. 



Die 



Obiit 

In Quirinali (Vaticano) Palatio. 
Anno. 



Sedit 



Annos 



Menses 



Dies 



Hie requiescit 



i6o 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



The casket of lead, when closed, is sealed by the 
Cardinal-Chamberlain, and then deposited in a third 
coffin made of common wood. Meanwhile the papal 
choir chants the Antiphon " Ingrediar," and the Psalm 
" Quemadmodum desiderat. " . Finally, an authentic 
document of the whole proceedings is drawn up by 
three notaries appointed for the purpose. 

Immediately next to the Chapel of the Choir there 
is a door leading into the vestr3'-room of the papal 
chanters. Over this door is a broad and deep niche, 
into which the coffin is placed ; and there it remains 
until a monument has been erected for it in a chosen 
spot within the walls of the Basilica. If the succeed- 
ing Pope should die before this monument is finished 
for his predecessor's remains, the latter are removed 
to another place to make room in the above niche for 
its new occupant. But if the late Pope had chosen 
for his last resting-place a spot outside of St. Peter's, 
his remains cannot be removed to it for one 3'ear after 
his death. During that 3^ear they rest in the above- 
named niche, or, as the case may be, in the other spot 
inside the church appointed for the purpose. 

Considering the spirit which animates the Church, 
it is easy to suppose that all the means which our faith 
affords, would be applied in the richest measure to 
secure for the soul of the departed pontiff eternal 
light and everlasting repose in heaven. Surely the 
Pope needs prayers more than any other mortal. 
During his life the Church prays without ceasing for 
him, that God may take him under His special protec- 
tion and grant him the divine assistance in the direc- 
tion and government of the faithful committed to his 
charge. After his death, his people pay him the last 
tribute of gratitude for the heavy responsibility which 
for their sake he had taken on his shoulders. In order 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



l6l 



to fulfil this duty of charity which Christians owe to 
all men in general and in a special manner towards the 
vicar of Christ on earth, the Church has ordered nine 
days' funeral obsequies for the Pope. These begin 
on the third day after his death, and the solemn ser- 
vices are performed each day by one of the cardinals, 
whilst all the others assist at them. On the ninth day 
the cardinals walk in procession around the catafalque 
erected in the nave of St. Peter's. Five cardinals, 
after having celebrated Mass for the deceased, 
sprinkle the bier with holy water, and incense 
it with the usual prayers. The Requiescat in 
pace" is sung for the last time, to which all present 
answer, "Amen;" and thus the funeral ceremonies 
are brought to a close. 

The Church does not, however, rest satisfied 
with these nine days' services, but offers, besides, 
many sacrifices for the repose of the deceased Pope. 
On the first day alone, two hundred masses are said 
for him in the church of St. Peter, and one hundred 
on each of the following days. The same number 
are celebrated in the several parish churches, be- 
sides those said in the churches of the religious 
orders ; and there can hardly be a single Catholic 
church or chapel in the whole world, in which there 
is not a mass offered for the Pope, when he dies, nor 
a Catholic priest anywhere on earth who does not, 
of his own accord, pay that tribute of love to the 
common father. 

Every day after the service the cardinals meet in 
a general congregation, and as one of these meetings 
had been held on the day before the obsequies, the 
number of these general assemblies is ten. A minute 
order of proceedings is laid down for each day, and 
the business is entirely directed towards the ap- 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



proaching- conclave. In the first meeting a number 
of papal bulls are read, which regard the election. 
These bulls are of Popes Alexander III., Gregory 
X., Clement V., Clement VL, Julius II., Pius IV., 
Gregory XV., Urban VIII., and Clement XII. Ac- 
cording to these bulls, the election is to begin ten 
days after the death of the Pope. It is not allowed 
to wait longer than ten days for absent cardinals, all 
of whom have, in the meantime, been summoned. 
No ecclesiastical censure can deprive a cardinal of 
his vote, and even an excommunication Avould be of 
no force against the one who would be elected. The 
election is to be held in secret conclave, and he is 
elected on whom two-thirds of the votes are united. 
Every ballot which brings no election is cancelled. If 
the elect is not 3^et a bishop, he is first to be conse- 
crated by the Bishop of Ostia. This consecration is 
now performed b}^ the Dean of the Sacred College, 
even if he is not Bishop of Ostia. As Pope he is 
confirmed by no one. Such is the import of the said 
bulls, and Avhen the reading of them is concluded, 
the cardinals make oath to observe the decrees. Now 
follows the breaking of the Fisherman's Ring used 
by the late Pope. This is done by the chief master- 
of-ceremonies, by order of the Cardinal-Chamberlain. 
Next, two prelates are appointed, one to pronounce 
the eulogy on the deceased, the other to deliver the 
address before the election. The days' sitting is 
closed by the selection of two cardinals, whose duty 
it shall be to superintend the building of the conclave. 

The second congregation is almost entirely de- 
voted to political affairs. The various officers of the 
State are confirmed in their positions, the Conserva- 
tores of Rome offer a tribute of condolence, and 
promise obedience to the Sacred College. There are 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



four Conservatores, and their office is held in very 
high esteem. Their official residence is in the Cap- 
itol and in the Consulta, and they control the higher 
department of the police. At the close of this meet- 
ing the two cardinals selected on the preceding day 
give their report on the building of the conclave. 

The congregations of the three following days are 
occupied exclusively with elections for the conclave. 
Two physicians, one surgeon, one apothecary, two 
barbers and their assistants are named. 

At the sixth meeting the cells of the conclave are 
assigned by lot to the cardinals, and six masters of 
ceremonies, besides other necessary attendants, are 
appointed. 

The seventh is the least important of all. Its busi- 
ness is to allow any cardinal, who may desire it, to 
choose a third attendant in addition to the two al- 
lowed by law. These are the so-called conclavists of 
the cardinals, and they are not to be confounded with 
other servants. One of them is generally a priest. 
In virtue of this office they henceforth rank as Roman 
Knights and enjoy the rights of citizenship. 

In the eighth congregation a catalogue is made 
of all the persons who are to be enclosed in conclave, 
or of all the conclavists, with name, surname, rank, 
and birthplace of each. 

The last two meetings are occupied with the 
choice of three cardinals, who are to preside over 
the entering into the conclave, and over the internal 
economy of that great family. 

But all this does not absorb the whole time and 
attention of these ten congregations. They serve 
also for the reception of official deputations and em- 
bassies. The ministers of foreign courts and the 
representatives of the cities of the pontifical States 



164 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



appear before them to express their sentiments of sym- 
pathy and loyalty. For these audiences a special 
ceremonial is laid down. The ambassadors, on 
entering the hall, bend the knee three times, and 
then address the cardinals standing and with covered 
heads ; all others make their address kneeling and 
uncovered. The Dean of the Sacred College re- 
sponds in the name of all. 

On the day after the obsequies and the last congre- 
gation, the Cardinal Dean says the Mass of the Holy 
Ghost in St. Peter's, at which the other cardinals are 
present. The discourse before the election is next 
delivered in Latin, by the cardinal chosen in the 
first congregation. The drift of this discourse is 
sufficiently indicated by the nature of the subject, 
and tends to induce the electors to place a worthy 
successor in the chair of St. Peter. At the close 
of the discourse, the cardinals enter the conclave in a 
most solemn manner. The procession is headed by 
the conclavists of the cardinals and the papal chap- 
lains, whO| chant the ' ' Veni Creator. ' ' Next comes 
the master of ceremonies bearing the cross. Then 
follow the cardinals, according to their three several 
degrees, and in the order of their creation in each. 
All wear the purple mozetta. The entire procession 
is accompanied by the Swiss and the Noble Guards. 

In this order, the train advances towards the 
place where the conclave is to be held. By law it 
should be in the Vatican, though it has often been 
held at the Quirinal. The cardinals are not, however, 
bound to either place. It is for them to select the 
place for the conclave ; and if they generally chose 
the Vatican, it was because the long galleries and the 
large halls of that palace facilitated the preparation 
of the necessary cells for the electors. 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



165 



When the procession has reached the place of the 
conclave, the cardinals betake themselves to the 
chapel of the election, where they say a short prayer, 
listen once more to the reading of the bulls on the 
election, and make oath to observe them. The Car- 
dinal Dean then makes an address to them, and with 
this closes this portion of the solemnities. For that 
day the conclave remains open, so that the cardinals 
may leave it and may also receive visitors in it. 

They must, however, all be in it before night, and 
at the approach of midnight the chief master of cer- 
emonies gives a signal with the bell, on which all 
who do not belong to the conclave are required to 
retire. The conclave is then solemnly closed by the 
marshal of the palace, in the presence of the three 
cardinals chosen for this purpose in the last congre- 
gation. 



CHAPTER IV. 



PART II. — THE CONCLAVE. 

E now come to the most important part of the 



V V papal election, or rather to the essential act 
in it. Thus far we have spoken of the death of the 
last Pope, of the introduction to the election, which 
takes place in the conclave. All this was but a prep- 
aration for the great act. And since we call this the 
" preparation" we may designate what we shall de- 
scribe in the third part by the word " ending" of the 
conclave. But when the conclave is over the Pope 
is elected, even though what we are about to de- 
scribe as taking place after the conclave, has not 
been exactly performed, but modified or even en- 
tirely omitted. As soon as the conclave is over 
there is a Pope, and this no power on earth, how 
great soever it may be, can change. The Pope may 
be killed, then the cardinals choose again ; but it can- 
not be said that this or that legitimately chosen car- 
dinal is not Pope. From these few premises the reader 
may judge of the importance of the conclave with 
regard to the election ; for it is the conclave that 
chooses the Pope. 

First of all let us consider what co7tclave means. 
Conclave is a Latin word, derived from clavis, a 




THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



167 



key, to which the syllable con, together, is prefixed. 
Taking this literal meaning, we see that conclave sig- 
nifies something under key, or under one key, some 
things together locked up with one key ; therefore, 
in a wider sense, a building with one door. With 
reference to the papal election, it is used to desig- 
nate the building in which this takes place, the en- 
trances of which, as we shall see later, are nearly all 
walled up, so that it is almost strictly true to say that 
the whole building is locked and unlocked with one 
key. 

The word conclave, signifying the building in 
which the election takes place, was also transferred 
to the body of the electors ; so that we understand 
by conclave the cardinals who are assembled in the 
said building to elect the Pope. No other convention 
of cardinals is called conclave ; they form congrega- 
tions. Even the assemblies of cardinals described 
above, though connected with the election of the 
Pope, are always called congregations. A conclave 
exists only when the cardinals are assembled in the 
building called conclave, without permission to quit 
it, and when the real election has begun, which is not 
to be interrupted by any other business. 

A third, though very improper meaning of the 
same word, extends farther, including all those per- 
sons who, during the election, dwell in the same 
building, namely, the assistants of the cardinals, the 
servants, and others ; but it can hardly be said that 
all these people taken together form the conclave ; 
at most they may be said to pertain to it. 

It is evident, therefore, that only the first two 
meanings of the word conclave are of importance, 
namely, that of the building in which the election 
takes place, and that of the body of men — the cardi- 
nals — ^who cast votes in the election. 



l68 THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



' About the building in Avhich the election takes 
place there was nothing determined. In former 
times the Pope could be chosen wherever the cardi- 
nals assembled for that purpose ; and, in fact, elec- 
tions were held in various towns of Italy. Nicholas 
II., at the end of the eleventh century, and Clement 
IV., in the middle of the thirteenth, ordered that the 
Pope should be chosen in Rome. Only in case of war, 
or what comes to the same, when revolution' or vio- 
lence is to be feared, can the conclave take place out- 
side of Rome. But this has seldom been the case. 
Pius VII. was chosen at Venice in 1800. 

In Rome itself no particular place is fixed for the 
election. This depends on the cardinals, who deter- 
mine it, at least implicitly, in the first general congre- 
gation, when two cardinals are appointed overseers 
of the conclave to be erected. In the second congre- 
gation these two make known what they have done. 
Hence they must know on the first day where the 
conclave is to be held. 

There are in Rome two places specially adapted 
to the holding of a conclave, the Vatican and the 
Quirinal Palaces. The cardinals preferred the former, 
not only for its immense galleries, but also on account 
of the proximity of St. Peter's Church, in which, 
after the election, divers solemnities are performed. 
But the Quirinal was sometimes selected, as when 
Pius IX. was chosen Pope. 

Next comes the erection of cells for the cardinals. 
This is done as soon as the building in which the 
election is to be held has been determined upon. If, 
as is generally the case, the Vatican has been selected, 
the cells are put up in the gallery from which the 
blessing is given. Their dimensions are twenty feet 
long, twenty broad, and twenty high. They are con- 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



169 



structed of light timbers and hung with violet-col- 
ored tapestry, li the cardinal has been nominated by 
the deceased pontiff, otherwise the hangings are 
green or red. Every cell has a little window facing 




FRAMEWORK AND ROOM OF THE CONCLAV^. 



the gallery. But, as the windoAvs of the gallery itself 
are walled up as far as the upper lights, a kind of 
dusk prevails in it, which makes itself still more dis- 
agreeably felt in the cells. Above every cell is its 
number and the escutchepn of 1:he cardinal residing 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



there. Each cell is divided into two rooms, the 
larger of which is occupied by the cardinal himself, 
the smaller one by his attendants. The space is, 
therefore, very limited, and when the most indis- 
pensable furniture, bed, table, chairs, and press are 
put into the cell, there is no room to spare. Beside 
the cell are two other small divisions, one forming 
the chapel in which the cardinal says or hears mass, 
the other serving as a refectory. Such is a cardinal's 
dwelling-place in the conclave, and the suites of rooms 
are several feet apart from one another. 

But besides the erection of these cells, one for 
every cardinal who takes part in the election, there 
is work also for the mason. At the end of the preced- 
ing chapter we saw how the cardinals enter into the 
conclave, and how, on the evening of the same day, 
all persons not belonging to the conclave are required 
to leave the building. This done, all entrances to 
the rooms of the conclave, as also the windows, are 
walled up, one single gate excepted ; but even there 
all unauthorized going in and out is guarded against 
with a solicitude almost excessive, notwithstanding 
the importance of the matter. 

We may here mention that the same may be said 
about a number of other measures to be hereafter de- 
scribed. This care and solicitude exceeds all bounds, 
and it would be impossible to carry it farther if the 
college of cardinals were a body of political intriguers 
against whom too great precautions could not be 
taken. Such men, it is true, may happen to belong 
to that august body, just as there was a Judas amongst 
the apostles. But those elements certainly are ex- 
ceptions ; they are known, and, humanly speaking, 
scarcely exercise any influence in the papal election. 
The vast majority of the Sacred College can safely be 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



171 



admitted to consist of virtuous and intelligent men, 
who value the good of the Church above every thing 
else, and whose judgment even the most artful dialec- 
tics can hardly lead astray. 

But if, neverthless, all communication between the 
cardinals and the outer world is cut off with a care 
bordering on excess, we must, to understand this, 
consider the deeper reasons of it. 

First of all, the Pope should not be chosen in the 
same manner as the ruler of a temporal elective mon- 
archy ; for the principal end of the State is to pro- 
tect the lawful temporal interests of men. Hence it 
is but natural that these temporal interests should be 
of great weight in the election, that they should be 
carefully balanced, and that, as they may change at 
every moment up to this last, until then also they in- 
fluence the election. 

But in the papal election it is not so. The rela- 
tion of the Holy See to the Catholic powers deserves 
indeed fully to be taken into account, and a certain 
regard is to be had for it in the choice of a new Pope. 
But all political elements that may enter into this act 
must exert their influence before the conclave, and 
the importance given to them has been fixed by what 
is called the veto of the Catholic powers. We have 
already explained in what this right consists. Each of 
the three powers can designate a certain person whose 
election would not be agreeable to it, and the cardi- 
nals will give it due consideration, though not strictly 
bound to do so. But if these powers, with interests 
in view entirely different from those of the Catholic 
Church, were to come during the election with 
notes, threats, promises, and intrigues, not only 
would the quiet of the assembly be disturbed, but 
some of the electors might be so influenced that. 



172 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



even without their knowing or wishing it, worldly 
considerations would decide a choice which ought to 
rest only on the rights of God and the welfare of the 
Church. This is the principal reason for which all 
communication with the electing body is cut off. 

It is, however, not enough that such influences, 
foreign to the end and life of the Church, be excluded ; 
not even the slightest ground for suspecting their 
presence should be given. And here we arrive at 
one of the most wonderful, really divine regulations 
of the Catholic Church, which we cannot abstain 
from briefly describing. 

In the nations of the civilized world there are two 
leading forms of government. The supreme power 
either proceeds from the people, and in this case the 
government very frequently presents a sad picture 
of weakness, and the men in power become the mere 
instruments of ambitious tribunes ; or the supreme 
power lies in the hands of a monarch or an aristoc- 
racy, and then the people are generally an object of 
spoliation. Periods of history in which a despot, 
free from egotism, made his people happy, or a 
majority of people paid due regard to the rights of a 
minority, are of rare occurrence. For this reason 
men even now are yet searching a way of balancing 
the powers in such a manner that they may prevent 
each other from doing evil and leave liberty only for 
doing good. But to this day no one has succeeded 
in solving the problem, though the greatest minds 
have made it the study of their lives. 

It is not so in the government of the Church. 
Exteriorly it resembles the monarchy in this, that it 
is founded on the principle of authority. The pas- 
tors feed the sheep, not vice versa. Such has been 
the will of the divine Founder, who possesses all 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



authority, and from whom all authority of both mon- 
archs and people is derived. But the whole authority 
finds its scope and its limits not in the well-being of 
the shepherds, but in that of the flock. Even Christ 
has represented himself under the figure of a shep- 
herd, but not of a shepherd who uses his flock only 
for his own benefit, but of a good shepherd who gives 
his fife for his sheep. Thus in the Church we find 
every thing ruled by the shepherds, yet not for the 
good of the shepherds, but for that of the flock. We 
see the Church provide beforehand for all spiritual 
and even corporal necessities. She carefully guards 
against all dangers of soul and body, and the shep- 
herd is always ready to stand in the breach to fight 
breast to breast against the enemy for the salva- 
tion of his flock. Catholics know this spirit of the 
Holy Church very well, and therefore feel secure 
under her protection. The tendency of laymen to 
substitute themselves for the clergy, a fact of fre- 
quent occurrence in Protestantism, finds no place 
among us, because the interests of both classes do 
not oppose each other. The interests of the congre- 
gation are also those of the hierarchy. But if, on 
this account, one would take us for an indolent and 
slavish mass without will and judgment, he would be 
greatly mistaken. On the contrary, where human 
weakness neglects the interest and salvation of the 
congregation, as may be the case, the people 
promptly seek help from the superior shepherds, 
which they know will not be refused. How far this 
foresight of the Church goes is evinced also in the 
many precautions taken to secure complete liberty in 
the papal election. There should not be left to the 
Catholic people any ground of fear lest human con- 
siderations and hopes may have influenced the elec- 



174 THE PAPAL ELECTION. 

don. God's help can certainly not be wanting at 
that moment, since it is of the greatest import for the 
Catholic Church ; for He is with her until the end 
of the world. But men must co-operate as far as it 
lies in their power, otherwise God may grant only 
:so much of His protection as is absolutely required. 
The Catholic people must have the satisfaction of 
knowing that, in this respect, nothing possible to men 
has been neglected. 

It is from this standpoint we must consider the 
following regulations, which appear to go into the 
minutest details, and one cannot help recognizing in 
them the wisdom and providence of the Church. 

After this digression, which the reader will excuse, 
let us return to the papal election. 

We have already said that after all persons not 
connected with the conclave have withdrawn, the en- 
trances, one single gate excepted, are walled up, and 
that this gate is guarded with particular care. It has 
two different locks, one inside, the other outside. 
Both are locked ; the key of the inside is taken into 
custody by the governor of the conclave, the key 
of the outside by the master of ceremonies. This gate 
is the entrance to the conclave itself. In the con- 
clave there is one window, and if an ambassador, for 
particular reasons, desires to obtain an official audi- 
ence, he can have it only at this window. All private 
or secret communication is thereby entirely excluded. 

The wall in which the gate is has four openings 
provided with shutters. Through these the cardi- 
nals receive their meals, and whatever else is abso- 
lutely required is introduced through them, so that 
intercourse cannot be had directly as at the window. 
The carrying of meals is subject to very particular 
regulations, of which we shall speak later on. 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



But all this was not yet deemed sufficient. Not 
only the conclave itself, but also the halls next to it 
are locked, so that unnoticed access cannot be had. 
The gate leading- into these halls from without, as 
well as the inner door, are provided with two differ- 
ent locks ; the key of the interior lock is kept by the 
Cardinal-Camerlengo, the key of the exterior by the 
marshal. Besides all this, a large padlock is added, 
the key of which is intrusted to the chief master of 
ceremonies. 

Near the main gate is, moreover, a small side-gate, 
which is also kept locked. It is opened only to let in 
those persons who are to have an audience at the 
window of the inner gate, or to let out sick Cardinals 
who wish to leave the conclave. 

Having thus described the arrangement of the 
building, we now come to the precautions taken dur- 
ing the conclave itself. The marshal of the conclave 
watches over its security against all danger from 
without. This is an hereditary dignity, which in 
former times belonged to the princely house of Sa- 
velli, and is now in the possession of the house of 
Chigi. Prince Chigi is marshal of the conclave. 
Under his command are the troops, who are stationed 
near the conclave and occupy all the entrances. 
During the conclave he lodges in a building near the 
main gate, and there also the governor of the con- 
clave, who is always a prelate, takes up his abode. 
The military are distributed over the several quar- 
ters of the city to secure tranquillity. Finally, the 
Cardinal-Chamberlain, together with his assistants, 
who for the time form his supreme council, remains 
always in the conclave. The duration of a conclave, 
as we shall see below when describing the election, 
cannot be even approximately determined before- 



1/6 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



hand. The conclave which led to the choice of Greg- 
ory X.,in 1272, lasted three years, and would then 
not have ended had not a compromise been effected 
by which six cardinals were intrusted with the elec- 
tion. Conclaves that lasted several months were fre- 
quent. One of the shortest was that in which Pius 
IX. was chosen, for it lasted but two days. 

But whether the conclave be long or short, the 
greatest precautions are taken that no secret com- 
munication may be effected. We have seen that ac- 
cess to the cardinals is rendered difficult, and secret 
conversation impossible. Even the ambassadors of 
Catholic powers cannot secretly confer with any car- 
dinal. If an ambassador has any thing to communi- 
cate from his government, he must inform the secre- 
tary of the Sacred College of it, and also appoint the 
time at which he desires to be received. Every day 
three cardinals — a cardinal-bishop, a cardinal-priest, 
and a cardinal-deacon — are chosen to give audiences, 
and to these the governor also reports the affairs of 
the civil administration. At the hour fixed for the 
reception, the ambassador calls on the marshal and 
requests him to receive him at the large gate. This 
reception is always solemn. A numerous suite fol- 
lows the ambassador, who thus discharges his duty 
publicly. One of the three cardinals of the council 
answers the ambassador's address, generally by 
expressing his thanks for the interest which the 
power concerned takes in the affairs of the Church. 

An easy way of effecting secret communication 
would be offered by the circumstance that the cardi- 
nals' meals have to be carried into the conclave. 
Wherefore a very exact ceremonial concerning the 
delivery of meals has been prescribed, the observance 
of which renders futile all attempts at fraudulent mes- 
sages. 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



177 



In the first place the dumb-waiters, by which 
alone the meals can reach the cardinals, are watched 
and sealed. Every day at noon the dishes are brought 
in solemn procession. At the head march two lack- 
eys with wooden staves, bearing their cardinal's 
arms. If the cardinal was created by the lately 




CARRYING FOOD TO THE CONCLAVE. 



deceased Pope these staves are violet, otherwise 
they are green. This also decides the color of the 
baskets containing the dishes. After the lackeys 
comes a valet-de-chambre with a silver staff, which 
is carried inclined if his cardinal belongs to the num- 
ber of those nominated by the deceased Pope, other- 
wise it is held upright. Next follow some knights, 
then the major-domo and the cupbearer ; after them 
two lackeys, who carry on two poles the basket which 
contains the food. As the number of cardinals is 



178 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



great, this procession has quite a stately appear- 
ance. 

When the procession arrives at the dumb-waiter 
the seals are broken. The major-domo steps forth 
and calls out the name of his cardinal, and one of the 
attendants approaches from within to receive the 
dishes, which are first examined by the appointed 




EXAMINING FOOD IN THE CONCLAVE. 



prelates to see that they contain no letters. For the 
same reason the drink is furnished in uncovered 
crystal bottles. After every thing has been examined, 
the food is deHvered to the cardinal's attendant. 
This done, the dumb-waiters are again locked and 
the chief master-of- ceremonies seals them anew. 

There are also regulations concerning the kind 
of food which the cardinals are to receive. Gregory 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



179 



X. ordained that they should complete the election 
in three days. If this were not done, for the follow- 
ing five days they should receive but one dish for 
dinner and supper, and if even after that they had 
not come to a decision, they should receive nothing 
but bread, water, and wine. Clement VI. diminished 
the severity of these prescriptions by allowing broth 
or fish soup, meat, fish, or eggs, and a dish of salted 
meat, together with fruits and cheese. Clement XII., 
to whom this appeared too lenient, though unwilling 
to forbid it, yet admonished the cardinals anew to 
observe frugality and moderation. We now pro- 
ceed to the description of what is done in the con- 
clave itself. 

As soon as the inclosure in conclave is accom- 
plished the first act is the oath to be taken by all 
those who are in any way connected with it. These 
are, besides the cardinals, their attendants, six masters 
of-ceremonies, with a servant destined for them, one 
or several confessors, who must belong to some relig- 
ious order ; a sacristan and his aid, besides two clerks 
who help them ; a secretary, with two assistants and 
a servant ; two physicians and a surgeon ; an apothe- 
cary, with two assistants ; two carpenters, two ma- 
sons, two barbers, with assistants, and thirty-five va- 
lets for general service. Ail these persons bind them- 
selves by oath to observe secrecy and fulfil their du- 
ties conscientiously. On the same evening, as soon 
as the conclave is closed, torches are lit, and the Car- 
dinal-Chamberlain with a master of ceremonies exam- 
ines all the cells that no person not belonging to the 
conclave may remain. In the same way they make 
sure that all is locked, and that unobserved correspon- 
dence cannot take place. All this is then recorded. 

But the conclave is not satisfied with one visit. 
Twice every day two cardinals walk through the 



i8o 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



entire inclosure to ascertain that no opening has 
been made in the walls. To such a degree is carried 
the solicitude with which the conclave watches over 
its seclusion. But if, in spite of all these precautions, 
it should become apparent after the election that a 
communication from without had been effected in a 
way of which nothing was known, or which was 
overlooked, the election already finished is not there- 
by rendered invalid. It is then supposed that an en- 
trance, which nobody thought of or knew has in 
reality not been had, especially if no trace of it can 
be found in the conclave. 

The following day begins the election, in which ail 
the cardinals present in the conclave have the right 
as well as the obligation to take part. They need no 
longer wait for the arrival of the cardinals out of 
Rome. But if any arrive after the conclave has been 
locked, but before the end of the election, they have 
the right to enter and take part in the election 
till it is finished. In this case they enter the con- 
clave solemnly, as the cardinals did who are already 
within. Nothing can prevent a cardinal from exer- 
cising the right of election, not even, as has been said 
already, the censure of excommunication. The only 
requisite is that he be sound in mind and have re- 
ceived the order of deacon. 

But if the cardinals' right of voting is not to be 
impeded or limited by any thing, the passive right of 
election, that is, the capability of being elected Pope, 
is still less limited. The cardinals are free to choose 
any one whom they deem the most worthy, and it 
may be said that if, on the one hand they must fol- 
low the voice of their conscience, on the other they 
are not bound to any thing else. 

It has been the custom since Urban VI. to choose 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



i8i 



the Pope from the ranks of the cardinals, and this is 
so well established that it is expressed on the ballot, 
where Ave find the words, " Eligo Cardinalem, " " I 
choose the cardinal N. N." But a law declaring all 
other choice invalid does not exist. It is not even 
required that the person elected be a priest. The 
celebrated canonist. Phillips, says that even a mar- 
ried layman mav be chosen. Onlv unbaptized per- 
sons and heretics are excluded. It need not be said 
that the cardinals cannot choose a woman, a child, or 
one that is insane. For though the person elected is 
not required to be ordained before the election, he 
must be capable of ordination when elected. An 
election brought about by simony is void. But even 
in this case the person elected remains Pope if 
another has given money for votes against the will 
or Avithout the knowledge of the candidate, or even 
Avith the intention of rendering the election impossi- 
ble. 

The A'oting takes place tAvice a day, once in the 
morning and once in the afternoon. A master of 
ceremonies giA'es a sign Avith the bell ; then he cries 
out Avith a loud A'oice : " Ad capellam Domini." In 
the morning this is done at six o'clock. As soon as 
the master of ceremonies has giA'en the signal, an 
assistant of each cardinal steps forth from his cell and 
carries his cardinal's Avriting materials into the chapel. 
Another assistant holds the cardinal's mantle. This 
is a garment Avhich CA'erA' cardinal puts on as soon as 
he enters the chapel. It resembles in form the ordi- 
narA' cloak Avorn bA' monks, and has a cowl, one end 
of Avhich is draAvn OA'er the head. This mantle is 
called Croica. 

In the chapel each cardinal takes his seat, the first 
cardinal-bishop occupving the highest seat to the left 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



of the entrance ; the first cardmal-deacon, the oppo- 
site one on the right. The seats are draped in green, 
and the floor of the chapel is covered Avith a green 
carpet. Before the seat stands a desk, which serves 
at the same time for writing and for praying. It 
bears the cardinal's arms. There is a flue leading 
from the chapel to the roof, and when the ballot has 
not decided the election, the smoke from the burning 
tickets gives notice to 'the people without that a Pope 
has not yet been chosen. • 

The election itself begins with the Mass of the 
Holy Ghost, which is said by the sacristan of the con- 
clave, an Augustinian friar ; after it the cardinals' 
assistants must leave, and the cardinals remain alone. 

The election can be performed in three ways 
only : 

1. By quasi-inspiration. . 

2. By compromise. 

3. By ballot, including what is called the " Ac- 
cessus. " 

AW these three ways Iiave their rules and their 
peculiarities, from which it is not allowed to deviate. 
If God would choose His representative by means of 
real inspiration, and make this direct interference 
unmistakably evident by miracle, then all human 
ways would be superfluous, and he would be the 
Pope whom heaven had thus made known. But 
when such an inspiration is only probable, even 
though, according to human reasoning, it may be 
evident, the Church is extremely cautious, and calls it 
only a quasi-inspiration, subjects it to a number of 
tests, and uses with regard to it all possible precau- 
tions. 

For this as well as every other form of election it 
is requisite that the conclave be strictly inclosed. 



THE PAPAL ELECTION 



183 



No canvassing whatever or previous deliberation 
concerning the candidate must have taken place. 
As soon as his name is called out by the one who 
is impelled to nominate him, all the cardinals pres- 
ent must immediately and without further thought 
give their consent. If a single one hesitates, a 
quasi-inspiration is not accepted, even though he 
should assent afterwards. Not even a discussion 
about using this mode of election is allowed. Like 
lightning the thought strikes all that the person pro- 
posed is the most Avorthy. Should a cardinal by 
chance be unable to speak, he must immediately 
write the name of the elect ; and if he cannot even 
Avrite, this must be done by another cardinal. Not 
even the shadow of a doubt should occur that the 
agreement was instantaneous and unanimous. If 
there are cardinals so sick as to be unable to leave 
their cells, they are forthwith informed of the result, 
and must instantly consent. Any objection, hesitation, 
or deliberation, renders the election by quasi-inspi- 
ration invalid. But this nullity would not be caused 
by previous general consultations held, not about the 
person thus elected or the form of election, but only 
about the qualities required in a candidate. If, for 
example, the cardinals have agreed beforehand to re- 
quire in the future Pope a special firmness or mildness 
or erudition or practical acquaintance with public 
affairs, and then a name is proposed to which all 
forthwith give their support, such a choice would 
be valid. In like manner they might agree not to 
choose, this or that one, as is the case when the 
" exclusiva" is brought to bear. This would not 
impede the subsequent election of another by quasi- 
inspiration. 

The second form of election is by compromise. 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



In the case of quasi-inspiration all consultation in 
regard to this method of election renders the election 
itself invalid ; but the contrary is the case in the com- 
promise. This method of election absolutely requires 
a previous agreement about it ; that is to say , all the 
cardinals must have given their consent to choose the 
Pope by way of compromise. 

The essence of this method of election consists 
especially in this, that the assembly nominates sev- 
eral persons, to whom the power of electing the Pope 
is deputed. 

Those in whom this power is vested are called 
" Compromissarii." The number of these is gener- 
ally more than two. Moreover, it is a law that these 
Compromissarii be cardinals ; still, if the assembly 
should delegate others, not of that order, the election 
would not thereby be rendered invalid. Laymen and 
excommunicated clerics are excluded from the number 
of the electors. The assembly gives its instructions to 
the Compromissarii, on the manner in which they are 
to carry on the election. These instructions, how- 
ever, should contain nothing contrary to the customs 
and laws prescribed for such elections. They could 
not, for instance, come to a decision by lot. 

The electors are to observe strictly the instruc- 
tions given, provided, as was mentioned, they are not 
contrary to the established laws and customs. They 
can raise to the papacy whom_soever they wish, in 
whatever manner they deem best, whether it be by 
Avhat is called adoration or by the ballot. They 
can choose any member of the conclave if they find a 
worthy candidate. The only restriction is, that he 
who deposits a ballot may not vote for himself. And 
hence it follows that if there were but two electors 
neither of tjiese could be elected, as the votes could 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



185 



not centre on either of them. When there are three, 
one of the three may be elected. 

In regard to the manner in which the election 
is to be carried on by the Compromissarii, we 
find that no more is prescribed than that they sol- 
emnly swear that they will give their votes to the 
person whom they think best qualified, that they 
retire into seclusion and assemble twice each day. 
He who is elected by these Compromissarii is the 
rightful Pope, provided the electors have exactly 
observed all the injunctions. 

As an example illustrative of the first method we 
mention the election of Clement X., a descendant of 
the house of the Altieri, in 1670. As the cardinals 
who were assembled in conclave were leaving the 
chapel after a fruitless ballot, the populace assembled 
without suddenly raised the cry, " Altieri Papa 
and thus by a quasi-inspiration, Clement w^as made 
Pope. It has also happened that the vacant see was 
filled by a compromise. We have already alluded to 
the election of Gregory X. The conclave had been 
in seclusion for three years, and no determination 
had been arrived at. This long delay was sud- 
denly done away with by the appointment of six car- 
dinals as an electoral committee, who gave the tiara 
to the Archdeacon of Liege, Theobald, Viscount of 
Piacenza, who at that time was at Acre with the 
army of the crusaders. 

Such elections, though not according to rules laid 
down, are nevertheless valid, being considered as 
just departures from the ordinary laws and customs. 

The usual manner of electing the Pope is by ballot. 
The candidate who receives two thirds of the votes 
is elected Pope. If, however, he who has received 
two thirds has deposited a vote for himself, and 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



if independently of this vote he has not the two 
thirds, he is not considered legally elected. Thus, if 
there are forty-eight electors, thirty-two votes will 
be required to form the two thirds. He, therefore, 
who has thirty-two votes, among which is found his 
own ballot, has not received the requisite number. 

If it should happen that no such majority of votes 
can be reached, the electors have recourse to another 
method of balloting, termed the " Accessus. " In 
this all the votes are made to centre upon those who 
in the previous ballots received the greatest number 
of votes. Then each of the voters can cast his ballot 
for one of these candidates. Those, however, who 
do not wish to change their previous choice, vote for 
the same, merely adding on their ballot that they do 
not "accede" to any of the prominent candidates. 
But if one of the candidates in this mode of election 
obtains two thirds of the votes he is by that fact 
elected. However, by thus limiting the number of 
candidates, it may happen that two of them in the 
same ballot receive votes enough to elect them. In 
this emergency he who has the greater number of 
votes over and above the two thirds is elected. 
Should there be no majority of votes throughout the 
election, i.e., should it happen that none of the can- 
didates receives the necessary number, all the pro- 
ceedings are cancelled, the ballots are burnt, and a 
new election is entered upon. 

The ballot in the afternoon at tAvo o'clock is 
performed in the same manner which was observed 
in the morning. The master of ceremonies, ring- 
ing his bell, makes his rounds, calling the cardi- 
nals "Ad Capellam Domini." The votes are cast, 
and if the election is not effected, recourse is 
again had to the accessus. In fact, every thing is done 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



187 



in the same manner as in the morning-, with this 
exception, that the " Veni Creator Spiritus" takes 
the place of the Mass of the Holy Ghost at the 
beg-inning of the election. 

Thus we see that the conclave meets twice each 
day until Some candidate receives the majority of the 
ballots. 

Before proceeding- to particulars, it may be sat- ♦ 
isfactory to our readers to show how two candidates 
at the accessiis can obtain two thirds, or more than 
two thirds, which at first sight may seem impossible. 

Let us suppose that there are forty-eight cardinals 
in conclave, of whom thirty have given their votes to 
Cardinal A., and eighteen to Cardinal B. If now, at 
the accessiis, two or more give their votes to Cardi- 
nal A., and the rest abide by their former votes, it is 
evident that Cardinal A. would be elected, as he 
has thirty- two of the ballots, or two thirds ; B., on 
the contrary, having only eighteen. 

Supposing, however, that at the accessus eighteen 
of the cardinals give their vote to B. , the others abiding 
by their given ballot ; Cardinal B. would count thirty- 
six voices in his favor, whereas A. would have only 
thirty. The Cardinal B., in this case, would be Pope. 
But again, it may be that in the ballot Cardinal A. 
obtains six additional votes, and Cardinal B. twenty ; 
so that A. would count thirty-six, and B. thirty- 
eight. Thus both have received two thirds, but B. 
would be elected, having the greater number of bal- 
lots. We see, therefore, that at the accessus two 
candidates may obtain the two thirds, and it is ap- 
parent also how they may both have the same number 
of ballots, and then recourse must be had to another 
election. 

We will proceed now to show in detail how the 



i88 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



election is carried on. W e class the proceedings 
under the following- three heads : 

1st. What precedes the balloting. 

2d. The ballot itself. 

3d. All that follows the ballot, including the ac- 
cesstts, if it be necessary to have recourse to it. 

In the first place, we will briefly allude to those 
things which precede the ballot. And first, the for- 
mulas or balloting tickets are carefully prepared. 
A description of these will be given hereafter. These 
formulas are placed in a silver salver, on a table, in 
the centre of the chapel where the election takes 
place. With them is a bag containing as many 
wooden balls as there are cardinals present in the 
conclave. Each of these balls has inscribed upon it 
the name of one of the cardinals. The youngest car- 
dinal-deacon then steps up to the table, takes the bag 
and draws from it nine balls. The three cardinals 
whose names are on the first three balls are elected 
as Scrutatores" or inspectors. The three following 
as ** Infirmarii," whose duty it is to gather the votes of 
such cardinals as may chance to be sick in their cells. 
The last three are to fill the office of " Recognitores," 
or revisers. It is the duty of these to examine the 
proceedings and attest the correctness of all that has 
been done. 

These officers being chosen, the formulas or bal- 
loting tickets are distributed among the electors. It 
may be remarked that if these ballots are not printed, 
it is prescribed that they be all written by one per 
son. They are usually six inches in length and five 
in width. The cardinals fill up the blanks, that have 
been left, disguising their writing, the better to 
observe secrecy. The ballot is divided into eight 



THE PAPA 



L ELECTION. 



sections. In the first, 
he who fills the paper 
signs his own name thus: 
"Ego N. N. . . . 
Cardinalis. ' ' The second 
is a blank not to be writ- 
ten upon ; the third con- 
tains two spaces for seal- 
ing the ballot. The 
fourth contains the 
words, " Eligo in sum- 
mum Pontificem, E. D. 
meum D. Cardinalem" 
— that is : "I elect my 
Lord Cardinal . . . 
to the dignity of Su- 
preme Pontiff." He 
who casts the vote, after 
the word "Cardinal" 
inserts the name of him 
whom he deemiS most 
deserving of the dig- 
nity. The fifth section 
is again left vacant, and 
on the sixth are two 
spaces for seals corre- 
sponding to the third. 
On the seventh the elec- 
tor writes a motto, gen- 
erally composed of a 
number and some verse 
from the Scriptures. 
This motto must be 
retained in the acccs- 
sus. The eighth sec- 




THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



tion is again a blank. The reverse of this formula is 
completely covered with devices, so as to render it 
impossible to read what is written on the inside. On 
the upper margin is the word " Nomen," and on the 
lower, Signa." Each of the electors fills up the for- 
mula at the centre table, and there, as it Avere, in the 




DEPOSITING BALLOTS IN THE CONCLAVE. 



presence of all, gives his vote. If an elector is not able 
to write his vote, another having previously taken an 
oath that what he will hear and write shall be secret, 
writes the vote of the disabled elector. As soon as a 
ballot has been filled it is folded in such a manner that 
nothing is visible but that section on which the word 
" Eligo" is written. The electors are forbidden, 
under pain of losing their ballots, to use their ordi- 
nary seal. They are required to have a special seal 
for the occasion. 

We proceed now to the counting of the ballots. 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



191 



The three inspectors take their seats near the altar, 
upon which a very large chalice and paten are placed. 
The Cardinal-Dean hereupon rises, takes his ballot, 
and raising it aloft approaches the altar, kneels and 
prays ; then rising he says aloud : " Testor Chris- 
tum Dominum, qui me judicaturus est, me eligere, 
quem secundum Deum judico eligi debere, et quod 
idem in accessu prsestabo." I take Christ our 
Lord to witness that I vote for the one whom, in the 
sight of God, I judge worthy, and I will do the same 
in case the accessus be used." Having spoken, he 
places the sealed ballot on the paten and drops it from 
the paten into the chalice. This done, he retires to 
his place. After him all the electors in the order 
of seniority do the same. If there are any of the 
cardinals sick in their cells, the " infirmarii " place 
their own votes in the chalice immediately after 
the dean, and then proceed to the fulfilment of their 
office. Taking a little casket, which has a small open- 
ing in the lid sufficiently large to allow a ballot to be 
dropped in, they go to the altar, unlock the casket, 
and having shown that it is empty they relock it, and 
leaving the key on the altar, proceed to the cells of 
the sick cardinals. Each of the sick electors receives 
a formula, fills up the blanks, seals it, and drops it 
into the casket. The " infirmarii" then return to 
the chapel, open the casket, and count in a loud voice 
the number of ballots. The ballots are then dropped 
from the paten into the chalice. If there are any 
present who are unable to advance to the altar, the 
third inspector carries the chalice to them, who, hav- 
ing pronounced the words, "Testor," etc., deposit 
their vote in the chalice. If a cardinal is so sick as 
to lose consciousness, he is considered as not being 
present. 



192 



THE PAPAL ELECTION, 



All the ballots now being in the chalice, the first in- 
spector covers the chalice with the paten and shakes 
it. This action, though not necessary for the validity 
of the election, is neverthless observed in order to in- 
sure still further secrecy. 

After this the third inspector counts the ballots, 
by taking one after another from the chalice into 
which they had been deposited, and placing them 
into another. This counting must be done in a loud 
voice, so that all present may easily hear. If the 
number of ballots does not agree with the number of 
electors, the ballots are burnt and a new vote is 
taken. It may happen that when the number of bal- 
lots does not agree with the number of electors, the 
cardinals do not burn the ballots, but endeavor to 
discover the cause of the difference. This they may 
be inclined to do, especially when the conclave has 
already lasted a long time, and when they see a pos- 
sibility of the votes concentrating on some very de- 
serving candidate. To cause such a discrepancy be- 
tween the number of electors and that of the ballots is 
severely prohibited under sin, and in case the number 
of ballots exceeds that of the electors, even under 
pain of excommunication, although the validity of 
such an election could not be called in question. If 
the ballots fall short of the number of the electors, he 
who receives the necessary two thirds independently 
of his own ballot is elected. Hence if out of forty- 
eight, one should, without reckoning his own vote, 
receive thirty-two, he would be rightly elected, even 
supposing that the full number of forty-eight votes 
were not deposited in the chalice. If, on the con- 
trary, fifty ballots have been given — two more than 
the number of the electors — he who is elected must 
have thirty-four of the votes. It is manifest that both 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



these cases rest on the fact that the elect has evi- 
dently secured two thirds of the votes. But when no 
such result follows, there can be no question of an 
election by accessus ; and the ballots are destroyed. 

If the balloting is found correct, the result is pub- 
lished. The first inspector takes up a ballot and 
reads, though not aloud, the name, which alone is 
visible ; the second does the same, and passes it to 
the third, who takes it, and with a loud voice pro- 
claims the name. Every cardinal takes down the 
name in writing. Should two ballots be found in- 
serted into one another, if they are for different per- 
sons they are not counted ; if both bear the same 
name they count as one ballot. The third inspector 
having read the name, passes a needle through that 
part of the ballot where the word " Eligo" is seen, 
allowing the ballot to slide down the string attached 
to the needle. This he does with every vote, and 
then knotting the ends of the string replaces all the 
ballots in the chalice. 

With this closes the ballot. The inspectors pro- 
ceed to examine more minutely the result of the 
votes. It may happen : 

1st. That the two thirds are absolutely certain ; if 
so, the closing ceremonies of the election take place. 

2d. That the requisite number has not been ob- 
tained ; then follows the accessus. 

3d. That it is doubtful whether the two thirds have 
been obtained. This doubt must then be settled, to 
determine whether the closing ceremonies or the ac- 
cessus should follow. 

In regard to the last case, it is always uncertain 
v/hether he who has two thirds did not in balloting 
deposit a vote for himself. Hence his own ballot is 
opened, and if he has voted for himself he is con- 



194 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



sidered as not having received the requisite majority. 
It may also be the case that an incapacitated cardinal 
has given a vote. His vote will be opened in order 
to discover Avhether he has voted for the cardinal 
who has just received the two thirds. 

Now Avhen all doubt has been removed, and it is 
certain that two thirds have been obtained, the three 
" recognitores," or revisers, step forward to review 
the proceedings, and to compare the ballots with the 
various signs and mottoes previously made. This 
having been done, the ballots are burnt. 

If the majority has not been obtained, an oppor- 
tunity is given to secure it by the accessus. 

The accessus is subject to the same formality as 
the ballot. No oath, however, is administered, as the 
one taken before the ballot is also binding during 
the accessus. The formula of the ballot differs in 
this that it is worded, Ego Cardinalis N. N. accedo 
Domino meo Cardinali N. N." It is evident that 
only they give such votes who have received at least 
one valid vote in the balloting ; and they give them 
for another candidate than the one for whom they 
voted in the ballot. If a cardinal does not wish to 
exercise this right of voting, he fills up the formula 
with the words, Accedo nemini. " The manner of 
writing, folding, and depositing this vote, and all 
other ceremonies, are the same as those observed 
during the regular ballot. If an accessus, owing to 
some circumstance, is declared invalid, it is imme- 
diately repeated, otherwise but one accessus fol- 
lows each ballot. The counting of the ballots, how- 
ever, is peculiar. The votes of the regular ballot 
and those of the accessus are counted together. 
If the requisite majority is not reached the revisers 
simply review the counting, and having burnt the 
ballots declare the accessus ended. 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



If, however, two thirds centre on an individual 
(and, as we have seen, these two thirds may even be 
obtained by two candidates), the ballots are exam- 
ined again in order to verify the proceedings. This 
can only be done by comparing the seals and mottoes 
of those ballots given in the morning with those just 
deposited in the accessiis. This is generally done as 
follows : 

The first inspector takes the cord upon which 
have been strung the ballots of the accessus, and 
loosening the first, opens it in such a manner that 
only the mottoes, seals, numbers, verses and the like 
become visible. Taking a record of these, he passes 
the ballot to the second inspector, who does the 
same, and hands it to the third, who reads them 
aloud, all the cardinals taking a note of them. The 
legend of the seal used for closing the ticket is also 
noticed, and with the help of this it is easy to find a 
corresponding ballot from the cord holding the 
tickets of the ballot. This latter is opened and com- 
pared with its counterpart, whence it will readily ap- 
pear whether both ballots have been deposited by the 
same elector. If these two ballots bear the name of 
the same candidate, the vote given at the accessus is 
null. If not, then the vote of the regular ballot is pub- 
Hshed aloud, the name of the candidate it bears, to- 
gether with the motto. All these are carefully noted 
down. The ballots having been thus examined and 
compared, he who has received two thirds, or when 
several have gained the requisite number, he who has 
the greatest number of votes, is declared lawfully 
elected to the dignity of Head of the Church. The 
ballots are burnt and the conclave is at an end. It 
yet remains to obtain the consent of the elected car- 
dinal, and when that is ascertained, to give him the 



196 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



honprs prescribed. Hence a great many ceremonies 
are yet to be gone through before the electors leave 
the chapel. 

As soon, therefore, as it is evident that a cardinal 
has two thirds of the votes, the inspectors announce 
the fact, and the junior cardinal goes to the door of 
the chapel and there rings the bell Avhich summons 
the master of ceremonies, together with the secreta- 
ries of the conclave. They present themselves to the 

Cardinal-Dean, in whose company and that of the j 

senior cardinal-priest and the senior deacon they | 

go to the cardinal-elect. Standing before him, the ' 

Cardinal-Dean says : " Acceptasne electionem de te i 

canonice factam in summum Pontificem ?" "Dost ' 

thou accept the election canonically made of thee as , 

Supreme Pontiff ?" If the cardinal does not imme- 1 

diately answer, the question is repeated three times, i 

Then the elected cardinal kneels down and prays. If ; 
he should refuse, the chair would again be vacant ; if, 

however, he says, "Accepto," the Cardinal-Dean j 

genuflects, and the first master of ceremonies claps i 

his hands, at which signal all the cardinals rise and j 

remain standing. The new Pope, when expressing j 

his acceptance of his election, at the same time states " 

the name by which he wishes to be styled as Pope. \ 

A record of all these proceedings is taken by the ; 

first master of ceremonies. This is read aloud and is 1 

then signed by him and the secretaries of the con- ' 

clave. ; 

The elect is then conducted by the oldest cardinal- \ 

deacons to the altar, and after a short prayer is led to ! 

the sacristy. Having taken off his cardinalitial ring : 

and put on the white stockings, red velvet shoes, ] 

white cassock, velvet crimson mozzetta, stole, and \ 

white skull cap, he is led forth to the altar, on the | 




THE ILLUMIiN'ATION OF ROME. 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



199 



platform of which a chair has been placed. Having- 
seated himself he receives "the obedience" of the 
cardinals, each kissing his foot and hand, and then 
receiving his embrace. When the Cardinal-Cham- 
berlain pays his homage, he places on the Pope's 
finger ''the Fisherman's Ring, " which the Pope im- 
mediately returns to him. It is men delivered to the 
chief master of ceremonies, who is to have engraved 
upon it the name chosen by the new Pope. The ofii- 
cers of the conclave having been admitted, and having 
done homage, the senior cardinal-deacon asks the 
Pope's permission to proclaim the election. Pre- 
ceded by the processional cross and mace bearers, 
he goes to the balcony over the main portal of the 
Quirinal or of the Vatican (the masons having pre- 
viously removed the wall that had been erected at 
the beginning of the conclave), the cardinal-deacon 
steps foward and in a loud voice says: ''Annuntio 
vobis gaudium magnum ; Papam habemus Eminen- 
tissimum ac Reverendissimum Dominum N. N., qui 
sibi imposuit nomen N.N." "I bring you tidings 
of great joy. We have as Pope the most Eminent and 
Reverend my Lord Cardinal N. N., who has assumed 
the name of N. N." 

No sooner have the words been spoken than the 
thundering salutes of St. Angelo's announce the 
happy tidings far and wide. From the vast popu- 
lace a deafening " viva" arises, while from every 
tower of the city the chimes ring out their joyful 
greetings. 

The second grand ceremony of homage takes 
place in the Sixtine Chapel immediately after the elec- 
tion. Thence the procession moves, chanting the an- 
them, " Ecce sacerdos magnus," down the stairway 
of Constantine to St. Peter's, where the Pope re- 



200 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



ceives the third and public homage. The Cardinal- 
dean then intones the antiphons and prayers pre- 
scribed for the occasion, after which the Pope gives 
his blessing to the people, and the procession re- 
turns to the chapel of the conclave and disbands. 
The three days following are given to public rejoic- 
ings, congratulatory audiences, and festivities. 



CHAPTER V. 



PART IIT. — MINOR PROCEEDINGS CONNECTED WITH 
THE CONCLAVE. 

When all that we have thus far described has 
been done, he who is elected is Pope, in all right 
and justice, and no man can in any way call his 
election in question or endeavor to invalidate it. He 
governs the Church from that moment, and no other 
act is required to give him further authority. Some, 
it is true, assert that the coronation is in some way 
necessary to the perfection of the election. How- 
ever, this ceremony is by no means essential, for 
we find that Clement V. threatens with excommuni- 
cation those who assert that bulls issued before the 
coronation are not binding. 

If the person elected is only a priest, he must be 
first consecrated bishop ; if only a deacon, he must 
receive both ordinations, that of priest and that of 
bishop. The bestowing of these orders was an honor 
reserved to the Cardinal-Bishop of Ostia. Of late 
this duty has devolved upon the Cardinal-Dean. This 
ordination or consecration must of course precede 
the coronation. In former days the ordinations took 
place on the day of coronation ; now thej^ are gen- 
erally conferred in private. The coronation, usually 
on the first Sunday or holy-day after the election, is 
performed Avith all possible solemnity. 



202 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



In a festive procession, headed by the papal cross, 
and composed of all the dignitaries of the Church, 
the Pope is carried on his sedan-chair under a balda- 
chin, near which march two nobles bearing the 
"flabelU," or great fans. The chair of the Pope is 
carried by the highest nobility, and is surrounded 
by the ambassadors of foreign courts, the officers of 
the army, the Swiss Guard, and others. 

When the procession has reached the basilica, the 
Pope mounts a throne that has been erected for him. 
The cardinals take their seats around him to hsten to 
the Latin address that is usually read. After this 
the canons and clergy of St. Peter's pay their hom- 
age to the Pope. 

Then follows the solemn entrance of the Pope into 
St. Peter's. The procession first moves into the 
Chapel of the Most Blesssed Sacrament, where the 
Pope offers a short prayer. Thence they proceed to 
the Clementine Chapel, where he again kneels in 
prayer. Finally, the procession arrives at the main 
altar, where the Holy Father ascends his throne and 
receives the homage of all the dignitaries, after which 
he gives his blessing to those present. 

After this ceremony the Pope intones the hour of 
Tierce, which the choir continues while his Holiness 
is being vested. A procession is again formed which 
moves around the sanctuary, during which one of the 
masters of ceremonies three times approaches the 
Pope, carrying on a silver salver a small lock of 
wool, which he burns, saying at the same time : 
** Sancte Pater, sic transit gloria mundi," " Holy 
Father, thus vanishes earthly glory." At the end of 
this ceremony the high mass begins. After the 
Confiteor" the Pope retires to his throne, whilst 
two cardinals read the orations. Then he returns to 



V 



i 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



207 



the altar to receive the pallium. This consists of a 
white woollen cloth, covering the shoulders, and fall- 
ing down in front and behind. This was once a pecu- 
liar garment of the Jewish high-priest. It belongs 
peculiarly to the dress of the Pope. The archbishops, 
however, wear it as a sign of their dignity. They 
must come to Rome to receive it three months after 
their election, and are allowed to use it only on cer- 
tain festivals and in their own churches. 

The Cardinal-Dean, after having presented the 
pallium to the Pope to be kissed, places it upon the 
pontiff's shoulders saying, " iVccipe pallium sanctum, 
plenitudinem pontificalis officii, ad honorem omnipo- 
tentis Dei, et gloriosissim^ ejus Matris et sanctorum 
apostolorum Petri et Pauli et sanctae Romance Ec- 
clesice." "Receive the holy pallium, the fulness 
of pontifical power, in honor of God Almighty, of 
the ever glorious Virgin Mary, the holy Apostles, 
Peter and Paul, and of the holy Roman Church." 
The Pope, clothed in the pallium, rises and incenses 
the altar, returns to his throne, receives the homage 
of the cardinals, patriarchs, archbishops, bishops, 
abbots, and penitentiaries of St. Peter's. 

Then the high mass is continued to the collect, 
when the Pope again retires to his throne. There- 
upon the first cardinal-deacon takes the papal crosier 
and accompanied by the subdeacons, auditors, and 
secretaries, descends into the chapel of the " Con- 
fessio," Avhere repose the relics of the holy Apostles 
Peter and Paul. Here the deacon begs the interces- 
sion of the saints for the new Pope. He repeats three 
times, " Life to our Lord N. N., whom God has given 
us as bishop and vicar of Christ." All answer : " O 
God ! help him ; O Mary ! help him." After this the 
high mass is continued without any further interrup- 
tion. 



208 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



After the mass the Pope is conducted with all 
pomp to the balcony of St. Peter's, where he is 
seated upon a throne, and the second in seniority of 
the cardinal-deacons takes the rnitre which the Pope 
has worn, and the Dean of the Sacred College places 
the tiara upon his head Avith the words, " Accipe 
tiaram tribus coronis ornatam," etc. "Receive the 




ST. JOHN LATERAN. 



tiara, adorned with the triple crown, and know that 
thou art the father of princes and kings, the ruler of 
the earth, the vicar of our Saviour Jesus Christ." 
After some prayers prescribed for this ceremony 
the Pope solemnly gives his benediction to the assem- 
bled multitude. He then returns to the hall of orna- 
ments, where, being disrobed of the sacred vestments, 
he receives the congratulations of the cardinals. 

The last solemn act connected with the election 
of the new pontiff is the taking possession of the La- 
teran basilica. This church is, as it were, the mother of 
all the churches of Rome and of the world. Formerly 
the Pope resided in the palace adjoining it. In tak- 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



209 



ing possession of this Church, the Pope, in a man- 
ner, takes possession of all the churches. In former 
days the ceremony took place immediately after the 
coronation, and the Pope, after a shght repast, 
set out, riding on a white palfrey, followed by all 
the officials of Church and State, most of them like- 
wise on horseback, towards the basilica. In later 




THE COLISEUM. 

times this ceremony is independent of the corona- 
tion, and is performed on any convenient day. Nor 
does he ride on a horse, but is carried . The proces- 
sion^ crosses the bridge of Sant' Angelo towards the 
Capitol. Here a triumphal arch has been raised, be- 
neath which the Senator of Rome, with his ivory staff 
in his hand, awaits the Pope. He makes an address 
and tenders his oath of fidehty. The procession 
passes thence through the Campo Vaccino, under the 
triumphal arch of Titus, towards the Cohseum, where 
the Rabbi of the resident Israehtes gives over to the 
Pope the five books of Moses, begging protection 



2IO 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



for those of his belief. This being granted, the pro- 
cession moves on to the Church of St. John Lateran. 

At the portal the cardinal - archpriest of this 
church offers the cross to be kissed by the Pope. 
Here the Pope again mounts his throne and receives 
the homage of all the clergy of the Lateran. 

The keys of the Church — one of gold, the other of 
silver — are then presented to the Pope by the arch- 
priest, who also reads an address. From this place 
the procession moves through the church to the 
council hall, where each of the cardinals and chief 
prelates receives from the Pope's hand a gold and a 
silver coin as a remembrance. Then having assumed 
the tiara, the Pope proceeds to the balcony and 
blesses the people. The papal treasurer scatters sil- 
ver coin among the people. 

The Pope having laid aside his sacred vestments, 
is conducted back to the Vatican. 

With this end the ceremonies connected with the 
papal election. \Yq say nothing of the festivities 
given by the Roman patricians, the foreign ambassa- 
dors and others. These not relating to our sub- 
ject-matter need not be here described. 



CHAPTER VI. 



CONCLUSION. 

Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build 
my Church." These consohng words assure us that 
the Divine Founder will ever bestow such firmness 
and stability on all occupants of the chair of St. 
Peter as will make it evident that He Himself bears 
the Church upon His strong shoulders, rather than he 
who holds His place. 

We have seen in the foregoing pages all the wise 
regulations, which, with divine assistance, have been 
made to place the most worthy person at the head 
of the Church. And as man has done all in his power 
to insure success to the work, God has blessed it by 
giving to his Church a line of popes, which in the his- 
tory of the world never found its equal, and which 
will exert its influence on all future times. Eminent 
among the great men who compose this catalogue 
stands Pius IX., and his greatness will be more and 
more clearly manifested as the harvest ripens which 
was sown by his hand. As yet much is hid from our 
sight, but when from the seed the mighty tree shall 
spring and spread far and wide, the memory of the 
great Pius shall be blessed and every Catholic will 
glory in his faith, manifest his enthusiasm for its 



212 



THE PAPAL ELECTION. 



advancement, and confirm its truth by the sacrifice 
of all that is dearest to him. 

We need not then be disheartened. He who 
sowed the seed now sleeps the sleep of the holy 
dead ; Leo XI I L, who has meanwhile been raised to 
the papacy will gather in the ripened harvest, and, as 
the former did not sow for himself or his own glory, 
so the latter will not reap for his own benefit, but 
only for the glory of God and the honor of the 
Church. The chair of .St. Peter is filled to-day, but 
will be again vacant, awaiting another occupant ; but 
Jesus Christ and His kingdom remain forever. 

Christus vincit, Christus regnat, Christus imperat. 



LIFE OF LEO XIIL 



HIS ELECTION AND THE FIRST ACTS OF 
HIS REIGN. 



THE LIFE OF POPE LEO XIII. 



CHAPTER I. 



MONSIGNOR PECCI. 



Y words shall not pass away " 
said our Divine Saviour : 
" Thou art Peter, and upon 
this rock I will build my 
Church, and the gates of 
hell shall not prevail against 
it." The Pope dies, but 
the Papacy lives on ; Peter 
is immortal. Yesterday Pius IX. 
gave up his holy soul to God ; to-day 
he lives anew in Leo XIII. The Su- 
preme Pastor made haste to place at the 
head of his flock a faithful shepherd, who might con- 
sole and reanimate it, bearing his staff with glory in 
the midst of the people of God. 

The present vicar of Jesus Christ on earth and 
the common Father of the Faithful was born on the 
2d of March, 1810, at Carpineto, in the diocese of 
Anagni, in the Papal States. His parents were 
Count Louis Pecci and Anna Prosperi, the daughter 
of a noble family whose seat is at Cori, not far from 




2l6 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

Carpineto. In baptism he received the names of 
Vincent and Joachim. The Pecci family, of which 
he is an offspring, belongs to the ancient nobility of 
Sienna, but in the fifteenth century it removed to the 
States of the Church. 

Carpineto, which has been rendered celebrated by 
the accession of Leo XIII. to the Holy See, is a town 
of about 5000 inhabitants. It is built on a height and 
flanked by narrow ravines. The landscape around, 
though somewhat wild, is beautiful. Nearly all the 
houses are small and poor, built of stone and hanging 
against the rocks. The palace, in which the Pecci 
family lives, dates from ancient times. The apart- 
ment of Leo XIII., which lies on the second floor, is 
furnished in the old style, with a certain richness, but 
with no eye to comfort. A portrait of Pius VI. and 
a few pictures adorn the ante-chamber. In the great 
hall is a portrait of the new Pope, in the dress of 
a Cardinal. The expression of his countenance is 
young, smiling, and of striking beauty. With the 
advance of years, his features have become more 
defined, but they have kept that amiable expression 
which renders the Pontiff so winning to all who know 
him. The father of the Pope is there, too, in the uni- 
form of a French colonel, together with his mother, 
who has all the graces of her descent from patrician 
blood. In his bedroom stands a simple iron bed with 
modest hangings, at the head of which is a silver cru- 
cifix on a red ground. Next to this room is a little 
family chapel, as there is always in the houses of the 
ancient nobility. Cardinal Pecci said Mass here 
during his stay at the time of his elevation to the 
Cardinalate. 

The tombs of the Peccis are in the Church of the 
Capuchins. Their coat of arms consists of a poplar 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 21/ 



or pine, a bar, two lilies, six roses and a comet on an 
azure field. 

Leo XIII. has three brothers, older than himself, 
and two sisters. The oldest of his brothers, who is 
not married, has already reached the age of 84 ; the 
second, who is 76 years old, has four sons ; the third is 
a priest, a modest and learned disciple of St. Thomas, 
who figured conspicuously in the preparatory commis- 
sions of the Vatican Council, as one of the theologians 
of the Holy Father. For six years he taught the 
philosophy of the Angel of the Schools to the clerics 
in the seminary of Perugia. 

The two sisters are married and both mothers of 
families. 

In 18 1 8, when Joachim Pecci was only eight years 
old, his father sent him, together with his oldest 
brother, Joseph, to the college of the Jesuits, in 
Viterbo. He there made his first communion, on the 
feast of St. Aloysius, June 21, 1821. 

After the death of his mother, in 1824, he removed 
to Rome and resided with his uncle in the palazzo 
Muti. He continued the course of his studies at the 
Roman College, which Leo XII. had just restored to 
the Jesuits. His professors of rhetoric were Father 
Ferdinand Minini and Jos. Buonvicini. In the same 
college he studied philosophy and mathematics, under 
Fathers Pianciani and Carafa, for three years ; and 
then theology for four years under Fathers Perrone, 
Manera, Patrizzi, and others. He sustained, in a most 
brilliant manner, two public acts or examinations at 
the Roman College and in the Roman University 
known under the name of Sapienza, and each time 
gained for himself the warmest applause. 

After this, he studied law and diplomacy at the 
Academy of Noble Ecclesiastics. He there made 



2l8 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



himself remarkable by a devotedness, zeal and intelli- 
gence so great, that Gregory XVI., who was skilled 
in the knowledge of men, resolved to attach him to 
himself, and on March 14th, 1837, named him Prelate 
of his household and Referendary of the Segnatura. 
Mgr. Pecci was then only 26 years old, but he dis- 
played so many good qualities and such ability for 
government, that the Holy Father did not hesitate to 
entrust to him offices of the utmost importance. 

He was ordained subdeacon and deacon, in the 
beginning of the year 1837, by Cardinal Charles 
Odeschalchi, in the chapel of St. Stanislaus, at Sant' 
Andrea on the Quirinal. At the end of the same 
year, on the 23d of December, he was ordained 
priest by the same Cardinal, and said his first Mass 
in the same chapel, assisted by his brother, Joseph 
Pecci, then a member of the Society of Jesus. 

He was now fully prepared to run his great 
career, and it was not difficult to foresee that he would 
rise to the highest distinction at the Papal Court. 

On the 15th of February, 1838, Mgr. Pecci was 
appointed delegate in the province of Benevento, 
where it was necessary to restore order. Brigands 
and smugglers desolated the province to such an ex- 
tent as to obhge the most powerful famihes to con- 
nive at their evil doings, in order to avoid pillage and 
murder. The population were terror-stricken and 
the officers of justice met with obstacles at every step. 
Once, however, that the public forces had been reor- 
ganized, the corps of the customs officers reformed, 
and that the king of Naples had decided upon repress- 
ing the banditti with vigor. Mgr. Pecci pursued the 
brigands so vigorously, by having them attacked in 
the very castles where they found a refuge, and by 
having the famihes arrested who furnished them with 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 2ig 



provisions and ammunition, that, within the space of 
fourteen months, the whole province was completely 
purged of the malefactors. 

Still there remained one band of twenty-eight 
brigands, the most reckless and notorious known. 
One day, a marquis, a rich potentate of the province 




and the protector of these wretches, came in person 
to see Mgr. Pecci, and said to him : 

" I am going to Rome to get an order for your 
expulsion from our province, and if that will not do, 
I will have you carried off." 

" Very well," answered Mgr. Pecci ; " but in the 
mean time, before setting out for Rome, allow me 
to entrust you to these carabiniers, to whom I give 
orders to keep you in prison for three months on 
bread and water." 



220 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

The very first night that the marquis was in 
prison, Mgr. Pecci had his castle surrounded, and all 
of the twenty-eight brigands were either killed or 
arrested. 

This firmness of action was joined to a great love 
of justice and affability of manners, which gained all 
hearts. Gregory XVI. praised the delegate highly 
for the success he had obtained ; the King of Naples, 
Ferdinand II., congratulated him openly on it. The 
peaceful inhabitants of the province hailed him as 
their deliverer, and it was easy to see, from the gen- 
eral grief on the occasion of a serious illness, which 
threatened a fatal result, how well Mgr. Pecci had 
known to win for himself the affection of all. Laity 
and clergy were equally alarmed, and in Benevento 
there were public processions of penitents, who 
marched with bare feet, and heads covered with a 
veil, to implore from heaven the recovery of their 
delegate. 

Three years had sufficed to regenerate Benevento, 
and this wonderful result induced the Pope to seek 
the same benefit for another portion of his dominions, 
through the same means. On June 12th, 1841, Mgr. 
Pecci was nominated as delegate to Spoleto ; but this 
destination was soon changed for one of still greater 
importance, when, on the 17th of the same month, he 
was appointed delegate for Perugia, the government 
of which had always presented great difficulties. The 
young delegate met with the same success as at Bene- 
vento. At his arrival in Perugia, a town of about 20,- 
000 inhabitants, the four city prisons were filled with 
criminals : five months later there was not one, and 
the most perfect order reigned throughout the city 
and its district. 

At the time of Mgr. Pecci 's appointment to the 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 221 

government of Perugia, Gregory XVI. expressed his 
desire to make a journey through his dominions, and 
as his arrival at Perugia had been fixed for an early 
day, the delegate hastened from Rome to his province 
to prepare for a proper reception of his sovereign. 
A road had been projected from Foligno to Perugia, 
which would greatly facilitate the approach to the 
latter city ; but the work was far from its termina- 
tion. Mgr. Pecci resolved that the road should be 
finished before the Pope's arrival ; and with his usual 
energy he accomphshed the task, to the wonder of all 
who knew the difficulties of the enterprise. 

Another instance will be of interest. He had re- 
ceived information that the bakers of Perugia gave 
bread of light weight. The delegate went out, early one 
morning, with his officers, and inspected all the baker- 
ies of the city. He confiscated all the bread which 
was found less than the proper weight, and had it 
distributed to the poor in the market place. One 
lesson sufficed for the dishonest bakers. 

When he had thus governed the province of Pe- 
rugia for a year and a half, Gregory XVI., who saw 
that Pecci daily justified more and more the hopes he 
had conceived of him, preconized him, on the 27th of 
January, 1843, Archbishop of Damietta m partibus, 
though he was then only 33 years old, and sent him 
in quality of apostolic nuncio to the court of King 
Leopold I. at Brussels. He was consecrated bishop, 
at Rome, in the Church of St. Lawrence, on the 
Viminal Hill, by Cardinal Lambruschini, assisted by 
the Bishops Asquini and Castellani, on Sunday, Feb- 
ruary 19th, 1843, then set out, by way of Mar- 
seilles, Lyons, Rheims, Mezieres, and Namur, to take 
up his post as Nuncio at Brussels. He held that 
position for three years ; and the Belgians still 



222 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

remember how great an influence he had gained for 
himself at the court, and how powerful a patron every 
Catholic undertaking found in him, not less than his 
far-sighted judgment, which enabled him to see, even 
then, the events which from afar prepared the Euro- >- 
pean revolution. 

Leopold and all the royal family held him in the 
highest esteem. 

The decree which made him Grand Cross of the 
Order of Leopold bears the date of May 5th, 1846, 
and specifies that this royal favor was conferred on 
him as a particular testimony of good will and esteem. 

Mgr. Pecci had a special liking for establishments 
of Christian education. He frequently visited the 
celebrated Academy of Saint-Pierre, and always held 
in the highest esteem the excellent religious of the 
Sacred Heart, who direct that house. He used to 
enter their convent without announcing himself, pre- 
sided at their feasts, and even interested himself in the 
compositions of the pupils. The ladies that have been 
educated in that holy house remember to this day 
with a lively emotion the piety and affability of him 
who is now the father of Cathohcity. 

The noble families of Belgium appreciated the 
great qualities of the apostolic nuncio, who kept up 
an intercourse with several of them, especially with 
that of the Count de Merode, where he used to pay 
frequent visits during his stay at Brussels. Mgr. 
de Montpellier, Bishop of Liege, had studied at the 
Roman College together with his Excellency, and 
they remained ever after intimately united. 

Mgr. Pecci could not long endure the Belgian 
climate, which is somewhat cold, and his health 
obliged him to leave Brussels after a sojourn of three 
years, 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 223 

In the month of April, 1845, the Nuncio set out 
from Belgium to visit some of the neighboring coun- 
tries, before returning to Italy. His route was from 
Brussels to Liege, where he spent some days with 
the friend of his college days, Mgr. Montpellier. 
Thence he went to Aix-la-Chapelle, Cologne, and up 
the Rhine to Mainz. He visited Treves also, and 
after some delay there, proceeded to Maestricht, 
whence he returned by way of Liege to Brussels. 
After reposing from the fatigues of this journey. 
Mgr. Pecci resolved to pay a visit to England, and 
spent two weeks in London ; after which he came 
back to Brussels and took final leave of the Belgian 
Court. His journey homeward took him through 
Paris, Lyons, Avignon and other French cities of 
renown, to Marseilles, where he took ship for Civita 
Vecchia. 

The King of Belgium had handed him a dispatch 
for the Holy Father ; but Mgr. Pecci, on his arrival 
at Rome, did not see Gregory XVI. alive. The Pope 
was on his death-bed, and expired on the istof June, 
1846. Meanwhile the Bishop of Perugia had died, and 
a deputation had been sent to Rome from that city to 
urge the appointment of Mgr. Pecci as his successor. 
This had been made known to the Nuncio before his 
departure from Brussels ; and he had been preco- 
nized Bishop of Perugia on the loth of January, 
1846. At the same time the Pope named him Cardi- 
nal, thus forestalling the request contained in the 
above-mentioned dispatch of King Leopold. As 
usual, his nomination to the Cardinalate was reserved 
in petto ; and as Gregory XVI. died before he could 
publicly proclaim the nomination, Mgr. Pecci's eleva- 
tion to that dignity was delayed. 

On Sunday, 26th of July, 1846, the new Bishop 



224 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

of Perugia took solemn possession of his see, and 
became the spiritual head of a diocese of which he 
had already been the civil governor. 

He found there still in existence the greater part 
of the works he had begun three years previously. 
His only anxiety now was to apply himself to make 
them prosper and to found new ones in accordance 
with the needs of the time. Thus he founded for his 
priests " the Academy of St. Thomas," and it was his 
greatest pleasure to preside at its meetings, that thus 
he might give them a more lively impulse. One 
should have been on the spot and have seen Mgr. 
Pecci living in the midst of the clerics of his semi- 
nary, to form an idea of his extreme benevolence and 
his great spirit of faith. His brother, Don Giuseppe 
Pecci, greatly aided him in this undertaking. 

Mgr. Pecci brought the ladies of the Sacred 
Heart, whose singular merit and devotedness he had 
learned to appreciate at Brussels, to Perugia for the 
education of young ladies. He had visited, at Paris, 
the venerable foundress, Madame Barat, and had 
promised to take the first opportunity to establish the 
new order in Italy. It was only after the lapse of ten 
years, whilst he was Bishop of Perugia, that he was 
able to fulfil at once his promise and his earnest 
desire. Madame Barat sent a colony of her sisters to 
Perugia, headed by Madame Lehon, a lady whose 
merit has since raised her to the highest post in the 
order. Another colony of the same order had been 
established at Rome in 1828, and held possession of 
the church and convent of the Trinita de' Monti. 

During his administration the seminary was re- 
built and enlarged, and the cathedral repaired and 
beautified. In 1849, he presided at a council of the 
Bishops of Umbria and wrote the act§ of the meeting-, 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 225 



which tended to the dev^elopment of rehgion in that 
province. When the Piedmontese inv^asion absorbed 
that portion of the Papal dominions, Mgr. Pecci had 
the honor of suffering imprisonment for the defence 
of right and justice. His seminary was seized by the 
new rulers ; but the bishop lodged his seminarians in 
his own house, and their studies were not interrupted. 
Mgr. Pecci showed in his whole government of 




CHURCH OF TRINITA DE' MONTI. 



the church of Perugia much firmness and wisdom. 
He wrote two celebrated letters to King Victor 
Emmanuel II. In the first, he reproved the fatal 
measure of civil marriage imposed upon the people of 
Umbria ; in the other he protested against the expul- 
sion of the Camaldolese friars of Monte Corona and 
of other religious corporations. 

In 1862, Mgr. Pecci was arraigned by the govern- 
ment for sedition and resistance to its authority. 
Three clergymen of the diocese had been accused of 
refusing to sign Passaglia's petition to the Pope urg- 



226 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



ing him to renounce his temporal power. They 
answered in the pubHc papers that they had refused 
merely because they had prepared another petition of 
their own more insulting to the Holy Father than Pas- 
saglia's. The bishop wrote to them to recall them to 
a sense of their duty, and meanwhile suspended them 
from all functions. The unhappy men, instead of 
submitting to their bishop, referred his letter to the 
government, which at once instituted proceedings 
against Mgr. Pecci. But its own judges were com- 
pelled, by the evidence of his innocence, to dismiss 
the case. 

A college had been established at Perugia for the 
Christian education of young men. The new gov- 
ernment seized it and placed its own teachers in it to 
train the youths in its own principles. Mgr. Pecci 
at once denounced the measure, withdrew his protec- 
tion from the college, and took doAvn his arms which 
had been affixed over the main entrance to the build- 
ing. On the following day the classes were empty, 
and the government was foiled. 

Seven times he visited the whole of his diocese ; and 
during his episcopate thirty-six churches were built, 
and many more were repaired. 

All his pastoral letters to his flock are models of 
ecclesiastical learning, and will serve as perpetual 
monuments of his zeal. The most remarkable among 
them are the last two, one of which he published 
before the Lent of 1877, the other on the loth of 
February, 1878. He inveighs strongly against the 
current errors in regard to religion and Christian 
life ; the vices which he condemns are blasphemy, 
the non-observance of feast-days, licentiousness, the 
reading of bad books and the neglect of education. 

Mgr. Pecci had been reserved Cardinal m petto by 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 229 

his Holiness Gregory XVI. in the Consistory of Jan- 
uary loth, 1846. The death of the Pope delayed the 
moment at which he was to receive the purple. It 
was only on December 19th, 1853, that he was created 
Cardinal of the Order of Priests, by Pius IX., with 
the title of St. Crysogono. 

The piety and austerity of Mgr. Pecci were always a 
subject of great edification for his diocesans. He prac- 
tised a special devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, 
to the Blessed Virgin, and St. Joseph, "At all 
times," he wrote in his pastoral of December, 1867, 
" fervent prayer has been the divine weapon of the 
Christian ; but, amid the great calamities of the 
present time, we must more than ever rekindle in 
souls the love of prayer and fly to the Sacred Heart 
of Jesus, our Saviour." 

He was most simple in his manner of living. He al- 
ways rose at daybreak, and after having said his Mass, 
set to work. He busied himself much with the study 
of history and literature, and acquired immense eru- 
dition. He made a profound study of Dante, so far 
as to be able to recite by heart long passages upon 
the simple quotation of a line. His conversation was 
amiable and sprightly. 

Like most of his countrymen. Mgr. Pecci took only 
one meal a day, at one o'clock. He was an enemy to 
delicacies and his fare was most frugal ; it consisted of 
boiled pastry, which replaced the soup, of boiled or 
roasted meat, of some greens, and of the cheese of the 
country, made of goat's milk. At all seasons of the 
year, the Archbishop retired at 10 o'clock. 

Notwithstanding the simplicity of his life, all those 
who have known Mgr. Pecci at Perugia affirm that 
his whole person shows a certain majesty. He is of 
tall stature ; his forehead is large, and his penetrating 



230 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

eyes betoken a singular vivacity ; his countenance, 
which austerity has furrowed from early youth, be- 
trays great keenness. He has a strong and sonorous 
voice, and speaks French and German fluently. 

At the time of the Council in 1870, Mgr. Pecci, 
who was then Cardinal, performed a touching cere- 
mony in the church of the French seminary. He 
there received the abjuration of a Jewish family of 
Bologna, and administered baptism and gave holy 
communion to the converts. The French bishops, 
who assisted at the ceremony to the number of four- 
teen or fifteen, were so struck by the majesty of the 
celebrant, that they could not refrain from saying 
afterwards : " What a fine Pope he would make !" 

During the two-and-thirty years of his episcopate 
he constantly showed himself gentle and benevolent, 
yet firm and austere. He admitted no consideration 
when there was question of principle. 

In the Consistory of 21st September, 1877, his 
Holiness Pius IX. called Cardinal Pecci to Rome as 
successor of the Camerlengo, Cardinal de Angelis, 
who had died in the preceding July. From that time 
his Eminence inhabited at Rome the palace of Falco- 
nieri, his new oflice obliging him to reside near the 
Pope. 

He was a member of the congregations of the 
bishops and regulars, of the Council, of the ecclesias- 
tical Immunity, of the Discipline of regulars, and of 
our Lady of Loretto ; protector of the congregation 
of the Third Order of St. Francis of Assisi, of the 
monastery of St. Urban, of that of St. Clare at Assisi, 
of the conservatory of St. Euphemia, and of the pon- 
tifical Academy of Archaeology at Rome. 

We cannot end this chapter more appropriately 
than by giving a synopsis of the last pastoral letter 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 23 1 



which Cardinal Pecci, Archbishop of Perugia, issued 
to the clergy and faithful of his diocese, a document 
that would have been considered remarkable even if 
within a year and a week its author had not been 
raised to the Papacy as Leo XIIL He took up the 
question, " Is the Catholic Church hostile to the prog- 
ress of industry, art, and science ? Is there, as her 
adversaries declare, a natural and irremediable in- 
compatibility between the Church and civilization?" 
These were the questions which the Cardinal set him- 
self to answer, and his answer was, " No ; the Cath- 
olic Church is hostile to no phase of progress ; is 
not incom.patible with civilization even in its purely 
material aspect." He Avent even further, and took 
pains to explain to his flock what civilization is, its 
merits and advantages, and these explanations were 
not given as a theologian but as a political economist. 
He said : 

"A celebrated French economist, Bastiat, has 
grouped and shown as in a picture the multiplied 
benefits man finds in society, and it is a wonder 
worthy of admiration. Consider the humblest of 
men, the poorest laborer — he has wherewith to clothe 
himself, well or ill, and shoes for his feet. Think how 
many persons, how many agencies, had to be put in 
motion to furnish this clothing or these shoes ! Daily 
every man places a morsel of bread to his lips ; be- 
hold here what labor ; how many hands it has taken 
to reach that end, from the husbandman who pain- 
fully turned the furrow to confide to it the seed, to the 
baker who converted the flour into bread ! Every 
man has rights ; he finds in society law3^ers to defend 
them, magistrates to make them sacred by their sen- 
tence, soldiers to compel respect for them. Is he 
ignorant ? He finds schools, men to write books for 



232 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



him, others to print and pubHsh them. To satisfy 
his religious instincts, his aspirations towards God, 
he finds those of his brethren who, laying aside all 
other occupation, give themselves up to the study of 
sacred lore, renouncing business, pleasure, home, the 
better to discharge these lofty duties. But this is 
enough to prove to you clearly that society is indis- 
pensable in order that our wants, which are as urgent 
as they are varied, may be satisfied. ' ' 

Having thus pointed. out the advantages of associ- 
ation and the division of labor. Mgr. Pecci went on 
to explain progress and define civilization as follows : 
Society, being made up of men essentially perfec- 
tible, cannot remain at a standstill ; it makes progress 
and perfects itself. One century inherits the inven- 
tions, discoveries, and improvements of its predeces- 
sor, and thus the sum of physical, moral, and political 
benefits grows marvellously. Who would compare 
the miserable huts of primitive peoples, their rude 
utensils, their imperfect tools, with all that we of the 
nineteenth century possess ? Nor is there any more 
comparison between the articles produced by our 
ingeniously constructed machinery and those toil- 
somely wrought by the hands of man. There can be no 
doubt that the old highways, unsafe bridges, and long 
and disagreeable journeyings of old times Avere not 
the equals in value of our railroads, which, as it were, 
fasten Avings to our shoulders and have made our 
globe smaller, so near to each other have they 
brought its nations. Is not our era, by the gentle- 
ness of its manners, superior to the rude and brutal 
days of barbarism, and are not reciprocal relations on 
a more friendly footing ? From certain standpoints, 
has not the political S3^stem been improved under the 
influence of time and experience ? No longer is pri- 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 233 



vate vengeance tolerated, or torture ; and the petty 
feudal tyrants, the wrangling communities, the wan- 
dering bands of free companions — have they not all 
disappeared ? It is, then, true that man in society 
goes on perfecting himself in his physical comfort, 
his moral relations with his fellows, and his political 
condition. And the different degrees of this succes- 
sive development to which man in society attains 
are civilization ; this civilization is new-born and 
rudimentary when the conditions under which man 
grows more perfect in this threefold sense are but 
partially developed ; it is great and high when they 
attain a larger development ; it would be complete 
were all the conditions perfectly satisfied." 

After this passage, of which G. de Molinari says 
in the Debuts that it makes the reader fancy he is 
listening to one of Michel Chevalier's lectures at the 
College de France, the Cardinal goes on to ask whence 
proceed progress and civilization. They come, above 
all, from labor. Labor was despised by the most 
illustrious of ancient philosophers, but " Christianity 
elevated, honored, and sanctified it. Jesus Christ, the 
true Son of God, submitted himself to a poor artisan of 
Galilee, and in the carpenter's shop of Nazareth did 
not disdain to set his blessed hand to labor." The 
apostles supported themselves by their labor, and 
later, when the barbarian hordes swept over Europe, 
the monk tilled the soil they had ravaged, and resus- 
citated industry. Still later the Catholic republics of 
Italy became the splendid centres of trade, com- 
merce, and arts. 

Ionia, the Black Sea, Africa, and Asia were the 
theatres of the commercial relations and military expe- 
ditions of our ancestors ; there they made important 
and fecund conquests ; and while abroad their flags 



234 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

floated wreathed with glory and terror, at home they 
did not remain idle. They cultivated the arts, and 
their traders, by every honest means, added to 
public and private wealth. Manufactures of wool, 
silk, jewelry, colored glass, paper, at Florence, Pisa, 
Bologna, Milan, Venice, Naples, gave lucrative em- 
ployment to thousands upon thousands of workmen 
and attracted to those markets the gold and the com- 
petition of strangers. 

Of course the Church does not believe that all 
should be sacrificed to the multiplication of riches, 
the health and lives of men, the feeble strength of 
childhood, and Cardinal Pecci protested against the 
" modern schools of political economy, infested with 
unbelief, that regard labor as the supreme end of 
man, and man himself as a machine more or less 
valuable as it is more or less productive." M. de 
Molinari, commenting on this, points out that econo- 
mists do not regard labor as an end but as a means, 
and that they are thoroughly in accord with their 
"eminent confrere of Perugia" as to the necessity 
of limiting the hours of labor and securing days 
of rest for the artisan as well as of avoiding the 
exhaustion of children ; they, like the present Pope, 
believe that charity is necessary ; they favor the 
widest possible spread of education, detest war and up- 
hold the freedom of commerce, and with sorrow con- 
template " the enormous number of the victims made 
by the privation of education, by physical infirmities, 
by war, and the convulsions of trade." 

After repelling as an odious calumny the accusa- 
tion against the Church that "she instils into the 
heart a mystical contempt of earthly things," and 
commends an asceticism which would exclude all 
material amelioration of the lot of man, the Cardinal 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 235 

sets himself to refute the still more venomous calumny 
which causes the Church to be considered the enemy 
of science. This pretended enmity, he says, is not 
only absurd, but impious, for it involves the supposi- 
tion that the Church fears lest science may succeed 
in dethroning God. So far from dethroning him, 
science can only make manifest his power and re- 
double the love he inspires by the full harmony and 
magnificence of his works. 

See and judge for yourselves. What is there that 
the Church can desire more ardently than the glory 
of God and the more intimate acquaintance with the 
divine Workman which is acquired by the study of 
his works ? If the universe is indeed a book on every 
page of which are inscribed the name and the wisdom 
of God, it is certain that he will be most filled 
with love for God, will come the nearest to God, 
who will have studied this book most deeply and 
most attentively. . . . What reason can there 
be that the Church should be jealous of the mar- 
vellous progress our age has made by its studies 
and discoveries ? Is there in them anything which, 
looked at from near or from far, can do harm to the 
ideas of God and of faith whereof the Church is the 
guardian and infallible mistress ? Bacon, so distin- 
guished in the walks of physical science, has written 
that a little knowledge leads away from God, but much 
knowledge leads back to God. This golden saying is 
always true, and if the Church is afraid of the ruin that 
might be wrought by the vain ones who think they 
understand everything because they have a slight 
smattering of everything, she has full confidence in 
those who apply seriously and profoundly to the 
study of nature, for she knows that at the bottom of 
their researches they will find God, who in all his 



236 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



works displays himself with the infinite attributes of 
his power, his wisdom, and his goodness." 

Then the pastoral letter brings to the support of 
its author's position the evidence of Copernicus, of 
Keppler, of Volta, of Galileo, even of the Protestant 
Faraday, " who saw in the science to which he 
applied himself with such passion an agency whereby 
to reach God." Finally it pays homage to the mar- 
vellous efforts of science and the sublime spectacle it 
offers in rendering man master of the forces of nature, 
in kindling within him a spark of the fire of the God- 
head. 

How splendid and majestic does man seem when 
he reaches after the thunderbolt and lets it fall harmless 
at his feet ; when he summons the electric spark and 
sends it, the messenger of his will, through the abysses 
of ocean, over the precipitous mountains, across 
the interminable plains ! How glorious, when he 
bids steam fasten pinions to his shoulders and bear 
him with the rapidity of lightning over land and sea ! 
How powerful, when by his ingenuity he seizes 
upon this force, imprisons it, and conveys it by ways 
marvellously combined and adapted to give motion 
— we might almost say intelligence — to brute matter, 
which thus takes the place of man and spares him his 
most exhausting toil ! Tell me if there is not in man 
the semblance of a spark of the Creator when he 
invokes hght and bids it scatter the shades of dark- 
ness I 

But the Syllabus ? Has not the Syllabus con- 
demned science and civilization ? No ; it has not 
condemned true civilization — that whereby man per- 
fects himself — but it does condemn "the civilization 
which would supplant Christianity and destroy with 
it all wherewith Christianity has enriched us." It 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 237 

is not directed against civilization and science, but 
against atheism and materialism. ' ' Having dealt with 
the material amelioration of the condition of man, he 
says : It would be an agreeable task to cast the same 
light on those things which concern the amelioration 
of man's moral and political condition, if, instead of 
writing a pastoral letter, we had set ourselves to com- 
posing a long treatise, and if we did not intend, if life 
permits it, to return at a future day to this subject. 

The Pope of 1878 will conclude the essay begun 
by the Cardinal of 1877. 



CHAPTER II. 



THE ELECTION. 

The Cardinal Camerlengo has the most extended 
rights. He is the head and president of the Apos- 
tolic Chamber. At the death of the Pope, he repre- 
sents, in some manner, the temporal power of the 
Holy See, in the same way as the Sacred College 
represents the spiritual power. Hence, to appoint 
him Camerlengo was to entrust him with the princi- 
pal authority during the vacancy of the Holy See. 
The result has shown that it was, so to say, to point 
him out to the choice of the Cardinals, who were thus 
given an occasion to appreciate the high qualities of 
Cardinal Pecci ; and we may safely say that, if Leo 
XIII. is a Pope after the heart of God, he is no less so 
after the heart of Pius IX. 

On the 7th of February, we find Mgr. Pecci 
kneeling at the death-bed of the much beloved Pius 
IX., overwhelmed with grief. When the great and 
sad event had taken place, and death had deprived 
us of our beloved father, the Camerlengo, by virtue 
of his office, found himself charged with the funeral 
services to be performed. He was to verify the 
death of the Pope and to receive from the Cardinal- 
Dean the deposit of the Fisherman's Ring. He 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



239 



was to place in the coffin of Pius IX. the three 
velvet purses containing the pieces of money that were 
struck during the late Pontiff's reign, and the parch- 
ment on which the events of his life were traced. 
He was, besides, charged with the direction of all the 
arrangements to be made for the organization of the 
Conclave ; and he displayed the highest wisdom in 
that dehcate mission. 

The Conclave which was destined to appoint a 
successor to the immortal Pius IX. was one of the 
largest in the whole history of the Church and the 
shortest in duration. The Holy Ghost, whose in- 
visible hand directs and governs the Church, and 
against whom human calculation and cunning can 
avail naught, shortened the days of mourning to fill 
Christendom with new joy. 

On the morning of February i8th, their Eminences, 
the Cardinals went to the Pauline Chapel in the 
Vatican to assist at the Mass of the Holy Ghost sung 
by Cardinal Schwa rzenberg, Archbishop of Prague. 
The diplomatic body in full uniform, and the represen- 
tatives of the Roman nobihty, were accommodated in 
the tribune of the chapel. At the conclusion of divine 
service, Monsignor Mercurelli, Secretary of Briefs, 
delivered an address on the manner in which the elec- 
tion of the Pontiff is to be carried on according to 
the present regulations of the Church. All the con- 
stitutions concerning the Conclave were observed 
with the greatest scrupulosity, so that no one might 
find a pretext to question the validity of the choice. 
This was also the desire of the Catholic Powers, 
which they had communicated, through their ambas- 
sadors, to the Cardinal Camerlengo. 

In the afternoon at four o'clock, the Cardinals as- 
sembled again in the Pauline Chapel. Thence they pro- 



240 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



ceeded, between two lines of the Noble Guard, the 
Swiss Guard and the Palatine Guard of Honor, to the 
Sistine Chapel, where they sang the " Veni Creator " 
with the Conclavists. At the conclusion of the pre- 
scribed prayers, the Cardinals took the oath required 
by the Canons. Then the Marshal of the Conclave, 
Prince Chigi, together with his retinue, stepped in 
and bound himself by a sacred oath to see that the 
regulations of the Church were observed during the 
Conclave. Every one of the Conclavists in like man- 
ner took the same oath. 

After these last ceremonies, which served as a 
prelude to the Conclave, were completed, each Car- 
dinal was accompanied by a Noble Guard to the cell 
assigned him by lot. The cells had been constructed 
in a part of the Vatican palace known under the name 
of Cortile di San Damaso. 

At eight o'clock, the master of ceremonies went to 
every cell, rang a small silver bell, and cried out at 
the third ringing, " Extra omnes. " Those that did 
not belong to the Conclave left the rooms immedi- 
ately. The Cardinal Camerlengo, accompanied by 
the senior Cardinal of each order, proceeded to the 
entrance of the Conclave and gave the keys for the 
outer door to the Marshal. This the only entrance — 
all the others had been walled up — was closed by 
means of two doors. The Marshal kept the keys for 
the outer, the Camerlengo for the inner door. Thus 
the closing of the Conclave was completed at nine 
o'clock in the evening. 

The next morning the master of ceremonies rang 
the silver bell at intervals of half an hour, and cried 
out **ad capellam Domini." At nine o'clock, the 
Cardinals proceeded to the Sistine Chapel, where 
the Dean of the College of Cardinals, Luigi Amat, 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 24I 



said low Mass. Th6 Cardinals who had neither the 
time nor convenience to offer up the Holy Sacrifice 
received holy communion. After Mass, all returned 
to their cells to take their breakfast. Towards noon 
the first ballot took place by sealed tickets. Cardinal 
Pecci had twenty -three votes, Cardinal Bilio eleven. 
Cardinal Franchi^ four, Cardinal Panebianco four ; the 




CARDINAL FRANCHI. 



other votes were scattered among- various Cardinals. 
But this ballot was declared void, because one of the 
Cardinals had, contrary to the regulation, affixed to 
his paper a seal which bore the mark of the dignity of 
a Cardinal. In the evening at five o'clock the second 
vote took place, in which Cardinal Pecci received 
thirty-eight votes out of sixty-one, or more than one 

* Died Aug. i, 1878. 



242 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

half. But according- to the decree of Gregory X. 
two thirds of the votes are required for the election 
of a Pope. 

In the afternoon, his Eminence Cardinal Moraes 
Cardoso, Patriarch of Lisbon, arrived in Rome and 
was admitted, with the customary ceremonies, into 



the Conclave. The double locked doors were opened, 
and, with the same formality, locked again. A faith- 
ful record of the whole proceeding was drawn up by 
Monsignor Pericoli, Dean of the Apostolic Protono- 
taries, and by the Marshal of the Conclave, and was 
signed by the dean, by Prince Phihp Lancellotti and 
Count Astolfo Servanzi. 

On the following day, February the 20th, the third 




CARDINAL PANEBIANCO. 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 243 



and last ballot took place. Cardinal Pecci,, Bishop of 
Perugia, was elected Pope by forty-four votes out of 
sixty -two. Immediately after the election, the Sub- 
dean of the College of Cardinals requested Mgr. Mar- 
tinucci, whose duty it was, to see that the prescribed 
ceremonies of the succession should be performed. 
The canopies which had been erected over the seats 
of the Cardinals were removed, with the exception 
of the ninth on the Gospel side, which belonged to 
the elect. 

The Dean of the Sacred College presented him- 
self before the newly elected Pope, and asked him : 
" Acceptasne electionem in Summum Pontificem ?" 

Do you accept your election as sovereign Pontiff ?" 
The Pope answered that he was unworthy of such an 
honor ; but since all had chosen him, he submitted to 
God's will. 

The dean put the second question : Quomodo vis 
vocari ?" " What name will you assume ?" The Holy 
Father answered : " Leo XIII.," in memory of Leo 
XII., for whom he had ever cherished a great ven- 
eration. 

In the annals of the Papacy no name stands out 
more beautifully than that of Leo. St. Leo the Great 
stayed Attila, St. Leo III. crowned Charlemagne, St. 
Leo IV. saved Rome from the Saracens. St. Leo 
IX, subdued, by his energy, his courage, and his 
virtues, even more than by his authority, the raging 
enemies of the Church ; all the Leos, veritable lions, 
seem particularly predestined to represent the con- 
quering lion of the tribe of Juda. Whilst awaiting 
a new Charlemagne, Leo XIII. stands, from his very 
accession to the Papal throne, in presence of more 
than one Attila, and we are well aware that the 
modern Saracens and other enemies of the Church 



244 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE TPIIRTEENTH. 

are to-day both numerous and powerful. Later on, 
history will say of the present Pontiff : " Vicit Leo de 
tribu Jiida.'' " The Lion of the tribe of Juda hath 
conquered." 




THE PEOPI.E WATCiJJNG FOll THE " SFUMATA." 



Mgr. Martinucci, in his capacity of Apostolic 
Protonotary, drew up the act of acceptance of the 
supreme Pontiff, whilst the witnesses were Mgr, 
Lasagni, Secretary of the Sacred College, and Mgr. 
Marinelli, Bishop of Porphyria. 

The newly elected Pope retired immediatelj^ to 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



245 



the sacristy, vested himself in the Papal robes, and 
returning again to the chapel, gave the Cardinals the 
apostolic benediction for the first time. The Cardi- 
nals kissed his hand and embraced him. Cardinal 
Schwarzenberg, who had been appointed by his Holi- 
ness pro-Camerlengo, placed the Fisherman's Ring on 
his finger, whereupon the Conclavists were admitted 




CARDINAL CATERINI. 



to kiss his feet. The joy was as great as the mourn- 
ing over the death of Pius IX. had been. Even on 
the first day of the Conclave, the piazza of St. Peter 
was crowded with hundreds of persons who came 
thither to watch for the " Sfumata, " or smoke issuing 
from a little chimney which communicates with the 
inside of the Sistine Chapel. When the ballot does 
not come to a definite conclusion, the tickets are 



246 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



burned, and the smoke, which can be observed from 
without, is a sign that no election has taken place. 

Thus it came to pass that most of the people who 
occupied the piazza of St. Peter at noon, and witnessed 
the smoke ascending from the chimney had dispersed 
when, at one o'clock, the bars of the great Loggia 
on the fagade of St. Peter's were withdrawn. The 
few persons that had loitered in the piazza hastened 
towards the church. There appeared at the Loggia, 
preceded by the cross, the oldest Cardinal-Deacon, 
Caterini, Avho, notwithstanding his advanced age of 
83 years, did not wish to be deprived of the honor of 
announcing to the Catholic world, the successor of 
Pius IX., and who now brought to the assembled mul- 
titude the glad tidings : 

** Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum : habemus 
Papam Eminentissimum et Reverendissimum Domi- 
num Joachim Pecci, qui sibi imposuit nomen : Leo 
XIIL" 

I announce to you great joy : we have as Pope, 
his Eminence, the most Reverend Lord Joachim 
Pecci, who takes the name of Leo XIIL" 

Joyous shouts of applause, indefinitely prolonged^ 
greeted the happy message. The news that a sove- 
reign had been granted to the Church of Christ 
spread with lightning rapidity throughout the whole 
city. Just as the peals of the bells of St. Peter's 
found an echo in the bells of the entire city of Rome, so 
the joyful news of " Papa Pecci, Leone XIIL," was 
on all lips in less than an hour. No one that has not 
witnessed it could believe it possible to unite in one 
place, and in less than two hours, thousands and 
thousands of people by one simple word. 

Three rows of carriages and princely vehicles, 
with numerous lackeys, drove up and down the 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 247 

Borghi. The Leonine City swarmed with people who 
poured out of every street and alley like bees from 
their hives. 

About half-past five o'clock the windows of the 
interior Loggia were thrown open. A dense mass 
hung round the entrance of St. Peter's. In a few 
moments the new Pope, Leo XIIL, made his ap- 
pearance. The faith which had remained dormant 
in the hearts of thousands assembled in St. Peter's 
broke forth in loud acclamations. A cry from fifty 
thousand voices, which the grand structure of St. 
Peter's alone seemed able to withstand, greeted the 
new Pope. 

The Monsignori and the Cardinals who accom- 
panied the Holy Father, tried in vain to calm the 
shouts. The exultation and joy were too great to be 
silenced. Then the new Pontiff stretched out his 
hands over the assembled multitude, and a deathlike 
silence ensued. He raised his eyes towards heaven 
and remained for a few moments in this attitude. 
His tall, emaciated form towered above all his attend- 
ants ; upon the red cape shone the golden stole, and 
his snow-white hair formed a beautiful contrast with 
the dark background. The impressiveness of the 
moment beggars all description. 

Turned towards the high altar of the Basilica, he 
sang, with a clear and firm voice : " Adjutorium nos- 
trum in nomine Domini ;" to which a choir of 
thousands of voices answered in unison : " Qui fecit 
coelum et terram." 

The Holy Father leaned somewhat over the raihng 
of the Loggia and imparted to the kneeling multitude 
his first solemn benediction. 

The spectacle which was witnessed in St. Peter's 
at this moment was sublime in the highest degree. 



248 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

What is it that makes an innumerable multitude of men 
of various conditions and stations in life, of different 




THE BASILICA OF ST. PETER's. 



habits and tastes, of various countries and nations, 
without material force, bend their knees in the pres- 
ence of this venerable old man ? Where can you 
find a spectacle to be compared to this ? Thousands 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTIL 25 1 

and thousands on bended knees, thousands and 
thousands fixing their gaze upon one point, thou- 
sands upon thousands whose hearts are exultant 
with joy, thousands upon thousands down whose 
cheeks flow tears of joy ; and above them all, the 
majestic form of the Holy Father blessing his people, 




CARDINAL MERTEL. 



in the name of the Omnipotent God — all this was a 
sight the like of which we shall look for in vain out- 
side of the Catholic Church. 

The Holy Father retired amid the shouts of : 
"Viva il Papa! Viva Leone XIII. ! Viva il Papa 
!" 

When the Marshal of the Conclave had heard the 
peals of the bells of St, Peter's, he had hastened, with 



252 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

his escort, to the gate which leads to the reception- 
room of the Cardinals. At the Ruota, Monsignor 
Lasagni informed him officially of the result of the 
Conclave ; but the doors were not opened until four 
o'clock in the afternoon, when the Marshal removed 
the barriers, and had the honor of kissing the feet 
of the newly elected Pope outside of the Conclave. 

After this first ceremony, his Holiness, passing 
through the Sistine Chapel, entered the hall of the 
Paramenti, where he admitted to the kissing of his 
feet the prelates and personages who had been for that 
day employed in the exterior service of the Conclave. 
After this, having again been vested in his pontifical 
robes, the Holy Father, preceded by two apostolic 
notaries, having at his sides the Cardinal- Deacons 
Mertel and Consolini, and followed by Mgr. Ricci, 
Avho had resumed the office of Major-domo, and by the 
Almoner and the Sacristans, advanced to the altar of 
the Sistine Chapel. After having knelt there and 
prayed, he rose and seated himself on the Sedia, 
placed on the platform of the altar, to receive the 
homage of the Cardinals. 

After the Dean of the Cardinals had recited the 
prayers, super Pontificcm clcctmn, the Pope solemnly 
gave the apostolic benediction. At last, having 
descended from the Scdia and prayed anew on his 
knees before the altar, he returned to the hall of the 
Paramenti. Here he deposited the sacred vestments 
p,nd went back to his apartments. 

During that time, all the bells of Rome continued 
to ring, re-echoing the joy of the people, and from 
a.mong the multitudes that returned from the Vati- 
can a long murmur arose which testified to the gen- 
eral gladness. 

In the evening, the following proclamation an- 



THE SISTINE CHAPEL- Page 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 255 



noimced the election of his Eminence Cardinal Pecci 
to the Papal throne : 

"Since God Almighty has deigned to raise to 
the Papal throne his HoHness Leo XIII., it is 
ordered that the ' Te Deum laudamus ' be sung 
and the prayer which is found in the ritual under 
the title : ' Preces dicendse in processione pro 
gratiarum actione ' be recited in the churches of 
the Holy City, without any exception, on the 22d 
of this month, at ten A.M. Moreover, all the bells 
of Rome shall be rung solemnly at the same time 
during the space of one hour. Finally we prescribe 
that in thanksgiving for the exaltation of his Holiness 
Leo XIII. during the next three days, viz., the 22d, 
23d, and 24th inst., the Collect ' pro gratiarum 
actione ' be added in every sacrifice of the Mass. 

" Given in our residence, on this the 20th day of 
February, 1878. 

" Raphael, Cardinal- Vicar. 

"Can. Placidus Petacci, Secretary." 

On February the 22d, after the Te Datm had been 
chanted in the Sistine Chapel, his Holiness received 
the ambassadors of France, Spain, Portugal, and Aus- 
tria in the pontifical apartments. The ambassador 
of France, M. le Baron Baude, was the first admitted. 

Leo XIII. loves France, and has alread}^ given 
several testimonies of his sympathy for that country. 
Before entering the Conclave, he received in his 
quahty of Camerlengo, in special audience at the Vati- 
can, the French delegates, who were charged to pre- 
sent to him the address of the Catholic societies. " I 
thank you warmly," answered his Eminence, "you 
and all the works which you represent. It is a great 
happiness for us to see France coming forward first 



256 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



on this occasion ; for, understand it well, we do not 
confound everything that comes nowadays from 
France with the French people, who have ever been 
so much attached to the Holy See and so generous to 
the Church. We therefore thank France, and we 
pray that she may prosper with her traditions of faith 
and greatness. She is at present in a critical posi- 
tion ; but let us hope that the prayers and zeal of her 
children may draw upon her the graces of Heaven, 
and that soon she may' resume the post of honor 
which she has always occupied so gloriously." 

Some days later, at the moment when the Sacred 
College rendered its first homage to the Sovereign 
Pontiff, Cardinal Guibert asked the Holy Father's 
blessing for himself, for the diocese of Paris, and for 
the whole of France. Leo XIII. gave his blessing, 
adding that he loved France much on account of her 
great generosity and devotedness to the Church. 

Lastly, on February the 28th, his Holiness said to 
the representatives of the French Catholic Universi- 
ties : France, in spite of her misfortunes, remains 
ever worthy of herself and shows that she has not lost 
her vocation. No one more than the Vicar of Jesus 
Christ has cause to compassionate the sufferings of 
France, for in her the Holy See has always found one 
of its strongest supporters. 

" To-day, alas ! she has lost some of her power ; 
and, weakened by the divisions of party, she is pre- 
vented from giving free scope to her noble instmcts. 
And yet, what has she not done for the Holy See, 
even after her many disasters ? She has already 
given it the pride of her most illustrious families ; the 
little Pontifical army was to a great extent made up 
of the sons of France ; and from the time they could 
no longer serve the cause of the Pope with their 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 257 



swords, France has given proof of her attachment to 
the Holy See in a thousand other ways ; her offerings 
always form a considerable part of the Peter's pence. 

" So great a generosity cannot remain unreward- 
ed. God will bless a nation which is capable of so 
many noble sacrifices, and history will yet write many 
a beautiful page on the Gesta Dei per Francos,'" 




CARDINAL GUIBERT. 



From the day following his election, the Sovereign 
Pontiff received at the Vatican the numerous Catho- 
lics that had come from all parts of the world to see 
him. The audiences lasted for nine hours. In one 
single day, Leo XIII. spoke to twelve hundred 
persons that came kneeling one by one before him. 
At times he had to rest himself awhile, overcome as 
he was by fatigue. They begged him to suspend his 



258 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

audiences, and he answered with mildness : " No, 
no, these dear children come from so far!" and he 
continued his daily labor. How many touching de- 
tails might be given about these audiences, which the 
Holy Father grants with an affability and a gracious- 
ness to which the majesty of the Pontiff gives a 
new value. He is a father to all. He receives and 
blesses the Roman nobility, the representatives of 
Cathohc associations, those of the press, of the Pontif- 
ical Zouaves. No one is excluded, and all carry away 
with them a grateful remembrance of the Vatican. 
One of the most touching audiences was that given to 
the deputies of the Perugian clergy, having at their 
head the mild and pious Mgr. Laurenzi, Bishop of 
Amata, in partibtLs, and coadjutor of the See of Peru- 
gia. The separation was hard. During thirty-two 
years his Eminence Cardinal Pecci had administered 
that diocese with an incomparable wisdom, goodness, 
and vigor. He loved and he was loved in return ; on 
both sides, therefore, there were tears. The father 
was forced to abandon the children of his apostolic 
heart, the children saw themselves obliged to make 
the sacrifice of their father to the Christian world. 



CHAPTER III. 



THE CORONATION. 

Meanwhile the day of the coronation, fixed for 
Sunday, the 3d of March, was approaching. His HoH- 
ness Leo XIII. wished to prepare himself for that 
great act by silence and recollection. The audiences 
were suspended, and he who was about to put on the 
highest crown on earth sought in prayer and medita- 
tion the strength and courage of which he stood in 
need to fill in a worthy manner the throne of the 
glorious Pius IX. 

The coronation of Leo XI 11. was to take place 
in the Basilica of St. Peter. Circumstances, which 
were particularly sad, determined the Sovereign 
Pontiff, in order to avoid all disorder, to choose the 
Sistine Chapel for that grand ceremony, which took 
place with all possible pomp. 

The holy father left his apartments, carried on 
the sedia gestatoria, accompanied by all the Cardinals, 
surrounded by his Pontifical Court. 

The cortege was opened by the Swiss Guard 
and by the bearer of the Papal cross. They were 
followed by the sediarii, or bearers of the sedia gcsta- 
toria, the bussolanti, and the mace-bearers, arrayed in 
their rich and varied costumes. Then followed the 



26o 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



Noble Guard and the two princes who command this 
corps, with Prince Colonna arrayed in a costume 
resembhng that of a Spanish cavaher in the time of 
Pliihp II. — a white ruff around the neck, black dress, 
tunic-shaped, black stockings, and on his left breast a 
large and glittering star. He is Prince iVssistant at 
the Pontifical Throne, and has the privilege of giving 
the water to the holy father at the lavations during 
mass. Beside him came the Marquis Sacchetti, also 
in gala costume as Foj'icrc inaggiorc of the sacred Apos- 
tolic palaces. These immediately preceded the Sov- 
ereign Pontiff, who was vested in red mozzetta, and 
was surrounded by his Noble Guard and followed by 
INlgr. Ricci, Major-domo, ^Igr. Cataldi, Pro-Master 
of the Chamber, Mgr. Samminiatelli, Almoner, Mgr. 
Marinelli, Sacristan, and others who for the time 
being hold the places of chamberlains and chaplains. 
His Holiness entered into the Hall of Tapestries, 
where he was vested by the two first Cardinal- 
Deacons in his sacred robes, and on his head was 
placed a mitre of cloth of gold. When this cere- 
mony was completed, the Pope, preceded by the 
Penitentiaries of the Vatican Basilica, who hear con- 
fessions in so many different languages, by the Arch- 
bishops and Bishops in white copes and white 
mitres, amongst whom were the Greek Deacon and 
Subdeacon, and finally by the Cardinals, of Avhom 
the Cardinal-Deacons wore the tonacclla, or tunic, 
the priests the chasuble, and the Archbishops and 
Bishops the white cope of cloth of silver sown with 
gold ornaments, and all with white mitres, moved 
towards the Ducal Hall, which Avas fitted up as a 
chapel, and on the arrival of the procession here, his 
Holiness, after a short prayer, took his place on the 
throne, which stood on the Gospel side of the altar. 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 263 



The Cardinals then approached him one by one and 
tendered him their obedience. They ascended the 
step^ of the throne one by one and kissed the right 
hand of the Pontiff. The Archbishops and Bishops 
kissed the Pontiff's foot. The Holy Father then im- 
parted the Apostolic Benediction and intoned the 
chant of Tierce, which was continued by the Pon- 
tifical choir. At the conclusion of this chant, the 
Pope was robed in the Pontifical vestments brought 
to him by the clerks of the Papal Chapel, and the first 
of the Cardinal-Deacons placed the sacred ring upon 
his finger. Then Cardinal Mertel, first deacon at the 
ceremony, with staff in hand, rose up, the Proceda- 
inus in pace was sung, and the procession was formed 
again and moved in the same order in which it came, 
except that immediately following the cross-bearer 
came the consistorial advocates, and in front of the 
Cardinals came Prince Ruspoli, Master of the Sacred 
Hospice and the Mitred Abbots. When the cortege 
began to move, his Holiness ascended the scdia ges- 
tatoria, under a baldachino of cloth of silver borne 
by eight dignitaries. The large fans of white ostrich 
feathers, the flabelli, were again seen in procession. 
The Swiss Guards with drawn swords surrounded 
the Pontiff. The whole style and arrangement and 
grandeur of this ceremony equalled, if they did not 
surpass, the great functions formerly witnessed in the 
Sistine Chapel during Rome's palmy days. The Sedia 
upon which the Sovereign Pontiff was borne was that 
presented by the Neapolitan CathoHcs to the lament- 
ed and dearly beloved Pontiff Pius IX. 

In the Sistine Chapel the throne was raised upon 
the marble dais on the Gospel side of the altar. That 
spot so long bare and unadorned was to-day fitted 
with its proper ornament. Behind the altar, over- 



264 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

shadowed by Michael Angelo's terrible " Last Judg- 
ment, " with its mighty and muscular figures, was an 
altar-piece in tapestry representing the fitting subject 
of Christ giving the keys to Peter. The floor of the 
chapel was covered with fine green baize, and the 
steps of the throne and altar with red cloth. 

As the procession was about to move, a clerk of the 




CARDINAL WISEMAN. 



Papal Chapel brought a handful of flax attached to a 
gilded rod, and having presented it to a master of cere- 
monies, the latter knelt, and extending the rod, burnt 
the flax in presence of the Holy Father, pronouncing 
at the same time in a grave and solemn tone : Pater 
Sancte, sic transit gloria mundi. " Holy Father, thus 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 265 

passeth away the glory of the world." The same act 
was repeated at the entrance of the Sistine Chapel, 
and finally a third time within the chapel before 
the enclosure within which were the seats of the 
Cardinals. Cardinal Wiseman wrote of this cere- 
mony, " Three times is this impressive rite per- 
formed in that procession, as though to counteract 
the earthly influences of a triple crown." It is to 
remind the Pontiff that the glory of this world is brief 
and passing as the flame which finishes in the very 
act of kindling. The solemn lesson seemed to make 
a deep impression on the mind of Leo XIII. 

A magnificent specta-cle was now presented to 
the eye in the Sistine Chapel. A large number of 
persons were present in the tribunes. In the Royal 
gallery were their Royal Highnesses the Duke and 
Duchess of Parma, with their suite. In the other 
tribunes were the ambassadors and ministers accred- 
ited to the Vatican, with the persons attached to the 
embassies, and representatives of the Order of St. 
John of Jerusalem and of the Knights of Calatrava, 
all in grand uniform and sparkling with decora- 
tions. On the same side, in another tribune, were 
the Roman princes and patricians with their fami- 
lies, and many distinguished personages, Italian and 
foreign. A tribune to the right was occupied by 
ladies in black dresses and veils. 

When the Pontiff arrived before the Papal altar, 
he descended from the scdia gcstatoria, and after a 
brief prayer began the Introit of the Mass. The 
Confiteor being finished, the Pope sat on the throne, 
and the three first Cardinal-Bishops, Di Pietro, Sac- 
coni, and Guidi, recited the three customary prayers, 
siLper electum Pontificcin, after Avhich he descended, 
and, standing before the first step of the altar, the 



266 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



first Cardinal-Deacon removed the mitre from his 
head, and the second Cardinal-Deacon, Mertel, 
placed upon his shoulders the Pontifical Pallium, 
which the Pope first kissed, and which was fastened 
by three gold pins. Cardinal Mertel, on imposing it, 
pronounced the following words : Accipe pallium sanc- 
tum, plenitudinem Pontificalis officii, ad honor em omni- 
potentis Dei, et gloria sis simce Virginis Mar ice, ejus matris, 
et Beatorum Apostolorum Petri ct Pauli, et Sane tee Romance 
Ecclesice. ' ' When his H oliness had received the pallium 
he ascended the altar and thence proceeded to the 
throne, where he received the full obedience of the 
Cardinals, who kissed his foot and his hand and then 
received the kiss of peace, for which his Holiness rose 
shghtly from his throne. The Archbishops and Bish- 
ops kissed his foot and his knee and the Penitentiaries 
his foot only. The Pope then proceeded to the altar 
and the Mass was continued, with all the prayers 
proper for the coronation. 

On the conclusion of the Mass, the Holy Father 
removed the maniple, sat again upon the throne, 
while the choir sang Corona aurea super caput ejus, 
composed expressly for this occasion by the maestro, 
Signor Pasquali, of Carpineto, the birth-place of the 
Sovereign Pontiff. The Cardinal-Deacon then in- 
toned the prescribed versicles and the following 
prayer : Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, dignitas sacer- 
dotii, et auctor regni, da gratiam famulo tuo Leoni 
Pontijici nostro, ecclesiam tuam fructuose regendi, ut ab eo 
qui tua dementia pater regum, et rector om7iium jidelium 
constituitur et coronatur, salubri tua dispositione cuncta 
bene gubernentur, Per Christum, etc., to which the can- 
tors repUed, Amen. Then the second Cardinal-Dea- 
con, who stood at the left of the throne, removed the 
mitre from the head of the Pontiff, and the first Cardi- 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 267 

nal-Deacon, who stood at his right, imposed the tiara 
upon him, at the same time saying in a loud voice 
these words : Accipe Tiarani tribiis coronis ornaiam, 
et scias Te esse Pair em Principiint et Reguin, Rector em 
Or bis, in terra Vicar item Salvatoris nostri Jesit Christi, 
cui est honor et gloria in sceciila sceciiloriim. Amen. 

The tiara placed upon the head of Leo XIIL was 
that presented to the Holy Father Pius IX, by the 
Palatine Guard of Honor. 

This was the most beautiful and touching part of 
the ceremony, and produced a deep impression upon 
the hearts of all present. Many an eye was wet with 
tears as the Cardinal placed this crown, this symbol 
of majesty and power, spiritual and temporal — alas ! 
the temporal rule is no more — upon the head of a 
Pontiff who is rapidly nearing the ordinary term of 
human life. All^ seemed so frail, yet it was destined 
to last forever. The centuries of the past have but 
strengthened the Church, the earthly head of which 
is that aged man sitting before us with the tiara upon 
his head. And as the flaming flax signified the tran- 
sitory nature of worldly glory, so does this feeble 
Pontiff typify an ever powerful endurance and a per- 
petual resistance to the mighty ones of the world. 

The act of coronation being accomplished, His 
Holiness imparted the triple benediction to all pres- 
ent. This was followed by the reading in Latin 
and Italian of the Bulls of Indulgence by the Car. 
dinal-Deacons. Then in the midst of a breathless 
silence and a religious respect, the Pontiff, seated on 
the sedia gestatoria, with the tiara on his head, accom= 
panied by the Cardinals and the procession as be. 
fore, passed from the chapel, blessing the people 
kneeling on both sides. Then having laid aside the 
Pontifical vestments in the Hall of Tapestries, and 



268 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

surrounded by the Sacred College, by iVrchbishops 
and Bishops, and Penitentiaries of St. Peter's, he 
listened to the following- address read by His Emi- 
nence Cardinal Di Pietro : — 

Since our votes, inspired by God, have caused 
the selection for the great dignity of Sovereign 
Pontiff of the Catholic Church to fall upon your 
Holiness, we have passed from profound affliction to 
a lively hope. To the tears which we shed upon the 
tomb of Pius IX., a Pope so greatly venerated 
throughout the whole world, and so beloved by us, 
succeeds the consoling thought that there arises 
rapidly a new dawn with well founded hopes for the 
Church of Jesus Christ. 

" Yes, Most Holy Father, you gave sufficient 
proofs of your piety, of your apostolic zeal, of your 
many virtues, of your high intelligence, of your 
prudence and of the deep interest you took in the 
glory and the majesty of our Sacred College, when 
you ruled the diocese entrusted to you by Divine 
Providence, or took part in the grave affairs of the 
Holy See ; so that we can easily persuade ourselves 
that being elected Sovereign Pontiff you will do as 
the Apostle wrote of himself to the Thessalonians : 
For our Gospel hath not been to you in word only but in 
pozver also, and in tJie Holy Ghost, and in much fulness, 

*^ Nor, indeed, was the Divine Will slow to man- 
ifest itself, that Will which by our suffrages repeated 
to you the Avords formerly spoken to David when he 
was declared King in Israel ; Thou shall feed my people 
Israel ; and thou shall be ruler over them. 

" To which Divine disposition it is gratifying to 
us to see how suddenly the general sentiment corre- 
sponds, and how all concur in venerating your sacred 
person^ as the tribes of Israel prostrated themselves 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



in Hebron before the new pastor allotted to them by 
God. So we likewise hasten, on this solemn day 
of your coronation, like the elders of the chosen 
people, to repeat to you, in pledge of affection and of 
obedience, the words recorded in the sacred pages : 
Behold we are thy bone and thy flesh. 

" May heaven grant that, as the holy Book of 
Kings adds that David reigned forty years — quadra- 
ginta annis regnavit — so ecclesiastical history may 
record for posterity the length of the Pontificate of 
Leo XIII. 

" These are the sentiments and the sincere wishes 
that in the name of the Sacred College I place at 
your sacred feet. Deign benignantly to accept them, 
by imparting to us your Apostolic benediction." 

The Holy Father received these sentiments of the 
Sacred College in the most benignant manner, and 
replied to them in the following words : 

" The noble and affectionate words which your 
Most Reverend Eminence, in the name of the whole 
Sacred College, has just addressed to us, deeply 
touch bur heart, already deeply moved by the un- 
expected event of our exaltation to the Supreme 
Pontificate, which has happened without any merit 
of ours. 

" The weight of the sovereign Keys, already of 
itself so formidable, which has been imposed upon 
our shoulders, is rendered heavier still by our little- 
ness, which is overburdened by it. 

" The very rite which has now been accomplished 
with so much solemnity has made us understand 
still more the majesty and height of the See to 
which we are raised, and has increased in our soul the 
idea of the greatness of this sublime throne on earth. 

" And since you, Lord Cardinal, have wished to 



270 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



compare us to David, the words of the same holy 
King recur spontaneously to our mind, when he said : 
Quis ego Slim Doniine Deus, quia adduxisti me Jiucusque ? 
' Who am I, O Lord God, that Thou hast brought me 
here?' 

" Nevertheless, in the midst of so many just 
reasons for alarm and for comfort, it consoles us to 
see all Catholics, in unanimous concord, pressing 
around this Apostolic See to give it a public testi- 
mony of obedience and of love. 

" The concord and the affection of all the Sacred 
College, which is most dear to us, and also the cer- 
tainty of their co-operation in the fulfilment of the 
difhcult ministry to which their votes have called us, 
consoles us. 

" Trust in the most merciful God, who has deigned 
to raise us to such a height, comforts us ; whose as- 
sistance we will never cease to implore with all the 
fervor of our heart ; and we desire that by all He may 
be implored, mindful of that which the Apostle says : 
Our sufficiency is from God. 

" Persuaded then that it is He who selects the 
weak things of the earth to confound the strong — 
Infirma miindi eligit ut confundat fortia~wQ live in the 
hope that He will sustain our weakness and raise 
up our humility to show forth His power and to make 
His strength resplendent. 

" With all our heart we thank your Eminence for 
the courteous sentiments and for the sincere wishes 
which you, in the name of the Sacred College, have 
addressed to us, and which we accept with our whole 
soul. 

" We conclude by imparting with all our heart 
the Apostolic benediction — Benedictio, etc." 

The Holy Father then arose and went to his apart- 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. , 2/1 



ments in the Vatican. Thus concluded the great 
event of this day. When the strange conditions 
under which this coronation took place are considered, 
it will leave a deep and lasting impression on the 
minds of those who were present. The majesty and 
grandeur of the ceremony; all that it represented of 
the past, and of the present ; the long line of illus- 
trious predecessors"^ of Leo XIII. who have worn 
this crown ; their vicissitudes and fortunes which his- 
tory relates, and their invincible endurance in the 
midst of the destruction of crowns and thrones, and 
the decay of kingdoms and powers, constitute this 
coronation of the 263d Roman Pontiff an act to which 
nothing on earth can be compared, and which far sur- 
passes all other coronations. 

* The whole number of Popes from St. Peter to Pius the Ninth in- 
clusive is 262. Of these 82 are venerated as saints, 33 of whom are 
martyrs. One hundred and four were Romans, and 108 natives of 
Italy ; 15 Frenchmen ; 9 Greeks ; 7 Germans ; 5 Asiatics ; 3 Afri- 
cans ; 3 Spaniards ; 2 Dalmatians ; i Hebrew ; i Thracian ; i Dutch- 
man ; I Portuguese ; i Candiot ; and one Englishman, The name 
most commonly taken was John ; the 23d and last was a Neapoli- 
tan, raised to the Chair in 1410. Nine Pontiffs reigned less than 
one month, thirty less than one year, and 11 more than twenty years ; 
only 5 occupied the Pontifical Chair over 23 years ; these are St. 
Peter, who was Supreme Pastor in Antioch for about seven or eight 
years, and twenty-five years, two months, and seven days in Rome ; 
Silvester I., 23 years, 10 months, 27 days ; Adrian L, 22 years, 10 
months, 17 days ; Pius VI., 24 years, 8 months, 14 days ; Pius IX., 
who celebrated his 31st year in the Pontifical Chair, June 16, 1877, had 
the longest reign except St. Peter, being Pope for 31 years, 7 months, 
and 20 days. 



CHAPTER IV. 



THE FIRST YEAR OF PONTIFICATE. 

Leo XIII., raised to the highest dignity on earth, 
bearing on his head the triple crown and in his hands 
the mysterious keys of the Kingdom of God, can now 
look down, from his lofty throne, on the nations of 
the globe, the great flock committed to his care. 
Truly his position is not enviable, nor is his task light. 
To succeed to Pius IX., than whom no Pope ever 
won more hearts or wielded a wider influence, was of 
itself sufficient to dishearten the best of men. But 
Leo felt that God had placed the burden on his 
shoulders, and whilst, on the one hand, he acknowl- 
edged his own weakness, on the other he filled his 
soul with boundless confidence in Him who had said 
that the gates of hell should never prevail against His 
Church, which he had built on Peter and on his suc- 
cessors. 

The new Pontiff had reason to fear that the mod- 
eration and regard which had been used towards his 
venerable predecessor, even by the bitterest enemies 
of the Church and of the Holy See, would be suc- 
ceeded by violence and extreme insolence towards 
himself. The whole world would have cried out 
against the man, how great and powerful soever he 



,1 



LIFE OF POPE EEO THE THIRTEENTH. 273 



might be, who would have raised his hand against the 
gentle Pius ; but did it not seem that the enemies of 
the Papacy had been impatiently awaiting the death 
of him whom they durst not touch, to exercise their 
wrath on his successor ? 

The Papacy stands alone, without a friend among 
the governments of the world. It is powerless, with- 
out territory, without treasure, without an army, with- 
out a voice in the Senate of nations. Pius IX. had 
died a prisoner in his palace ; and Leo XIII. could 
not hope to fare better than he. The prospect must 
have been gloomy enough to the new Pope as he cast 
a mournful look around. But he did not lose heart. 
Besides looking around him, at the sad spectacle 
of human ingratitude, he looked upward to the 
source of strength to battle against the world. Here 
all was dark ; but there, on high, was " Lumen in 
Coelo," a ray from heaven, Avhich showed his way 
and brought hope of a better future. 

The first year of his Pontificate is hardly closed, 
and we will briefly review its acts, which will show 
how energetically the new Pope addressed him- 
self to his work. Our sketch must be brief, and it 
will limit itself to the principal features of the new 
reign ; but enough will be said to console us for the 
loss of him whose career was more glorious than 
it v/as prolonged, and whose deeds have already 
written his name as Pius the Great in the annals of 
the Church. 

It is customary for the Sovereign Pontiff, as for 
other sovereigns, to announce his accession to the 
courts of Europe. Leo XIII. complied with this 
formality, not excluding from his courtesy even the 
States which had been most hostile to the Church 
under the preceding Pope. His letters to the Swiss 



2/4 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



Confederation, to the Emperor of Germany, and to 
the Czar, were the oUve branch of reconcihation held 
out to those rulers by the Church they had perse- 
cuted, as well as a means by which they might have 
honorably withdrawn from a false position. We will 
here give some of these documents, as proofs of the 
sincerest good faith on the one side, and of the most 
meaningless professions on the other. 

The following is the text of the letter to the Swiss 
Federal Council : 

LEO PP. XIII. 

To His Excellency the President of the Swiss Confed- 
eration. 

"Your Excellency :— Raised by the will of 
God, and not through any merit of ours, to the high 
chair of the Prince of the Apostles, we hasten to 
inform your Excellency, trusting that this our per- 
sonal communication of the fact will be agreeable and 
welcome to you. We regret that the friendly rela- 
tions which formerly subsisted between the Holy See 
and the Swiss Confederation have for some years 
been painfully interrupted, and that the condition 
of the Catholic religion in Switzerland is much to be 
lamented. With full confidence in the sentiments of 
rectitude which animate your Excellency and the 
Swiss people, we hope that some means will soon be 
found for putting an end to this evil state of things, 
and, in the pleasing expectation of this, we beseech 
the Lord to grant you the fulness of His heavenly 
blessings, and we pray Him at the same time to unite 
you with us in the bonds of perfect charity. 

" Given at St. Peter's, Rome, February 20, 1878, 
in the first year of our Pontificate. 

Leo pp. XIH." 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 2/5 



To this nobly-spoken message the foUovving reply 
was sent bv the Swiss Council : 

To His Holiness Pope Leo XHL 

" Most Holy Father : — Your Holiness has con- 
descended, by your Brief of February 20, of this 
year, to acquaint the Swiss Federal Council of your 
elevation to the Apostolic Chair, which took place on 
that day. The Federal Council has received this 
communication with the most lively interest, and 
will not permit this occasion to pass without offer- 
ing to Your Holiness their most sincere good wishes, 
together with their thanks for the Brief with which 
you have honored them. 

" When Your Holiness designates the condition of 
the Catholics of Switzerland as lamentable, the Coun- 
cil must observe on its side that your religion, like all 
others, enjoys a freedom, which is guaranteed to it 
by the Federal Constitution, and is only restricted by 
the condition that the ecclesiastical authorities shall 
not assail either the rights and powers of the State, 
or the rights and liberties of the citizens. 

' ' The Federal Council will consider itself fortu- 
nate in being able, within its own sphere of action, 
to support the exertions of your Holiness to maintain 
religious peace and a good understanding between 
the several religious denominations in Switzerland. 
With this sentiment it avails itself of this first oppor- 
tunity to convey to your Holiness the assurance of its 
distinguished veneration, and with you to recommend 
itself to the protection of the Almighty. 

" Bern, April 5, 1878. 

" In the name of the Swiss Federal Council. 

" SCHENK. 

" The Chancellor of the Confederation, ScHlESS," 



276 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

It is easy to trace this document to the leaders 
of the " Cultur-Kampf, " which has desolated the 
Church in Germany and Switzerland, in the name of 
justice and civil rights. And it is this shameless as 
well as heartless diplomacy that now rules the world. 

The Brief addressed, on the same occasion, to 
William Emperor of Germany is couched in the fol- 
lowing terms : 

" Having been, by the inscrutable designs of God, 
and without any merit of our own, raised to the See 
of the Prince of the Apostles, we deem it our duty to 
make this fact known to your Royal and Imperial 
Majesty, under whose glorious and powerful sceptre 
live so large a number of the professors of our holy 
religion. 

" We find to our sorrow that the relations which 
once existed between the Holy See and your Majes- 
ty have been broken ; and we therefore appeal to 
your magnanimity for the restoration of peace and 
tranquillity of conscience to that portion of your sub- 
jects. The Catholics of Prussia, as in duty bound by 
the faith they profess, will not fail to prove them- 
selves grateful, devoted and faithful towards your 
Majesty. 

" Convinced of your Majesty's equity, we beg our 
Lord to bestow on you the abundance of His 
heavenly gifts, and we implore Him to unite us to 
your Majesty in the bonds of the most perfect Chris- 
tian charity." 

A similar letter, almost in the same terms, was ad- 
dressed to the Czar of Russia. 

The answer from the Court of Berlin did not appear 
till the 24th of March, and was evidently intended to 
influence the then approaching elections in Prussia, 
though it gave little hope of better things for Catho- 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 2JJ 



lies. After the usual preliminaries, the Emperor is 
made to say : " Your Holiness with reason observes 
that our Catholic subjects, like their Protestant fellow- 
citizens, yield obedience to authority and to the laws, 
as their common faith in Christ requires. We are 
happy to perceive, from the friendly expressions of 
your Holiness, that you are disposed to use the power 
which your exalted position places in your hands to 
induce those of our Catholic subjects who have 
hitherto been forgetful of their duty to obey the 
laws of the country in which they live." 

A letter dictated to the Prince Imperial, in answer 
to the Holy Father's congratulations to the Emperor 
on his happy escape from the plots laid against his 
life, more openly declares the determination of the 
Imperial Government to maintain the crying injustice 
of the " May laws." One sentence from the letter will 
suffice : In answer to the request of your Holiness, 
in the letter of the 17th of April, that the constitution 
and the laws of Prussia may be so modified as to be 
conformable to the dogmas of the Catholic Church 
[be it remarked that the Holy Father's words are not 
correctly quoted], I must say that no Prussian mon- 
arch can ever accept it, for the reason that the inde- 
pendence of the monarchy would be diminished if the 
free exercise of its legislation were made subordinate 
to a foreign power." Socialism, in its worst form, 
may yet punish the rulers of Prussia for rejecting the 
only means which might have stayed the decline of 
their power. 

The Czar's answer was dated the 22d of February, 
which corresponds to the 6th of March in the Gre- 
gorian Calendar. It congratulates the Holy Father on 
his elevation, and then, with the usual truthfulness of 
modern diplomacy, continues : 



2;8 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



"It has not depended on us that the Roman Cath- 
olic Church, like all the other churches which exist 
in our empire, has not fulfilled, in entire security, the 
mission which rehgion, strictly independent of all 
political influence, is called upon to exercise for the 
edification and moral improvement of the people. 
Your Holiness may be assured that within these 
limits the protection compatible with the fundamen- 
tal laws of our empire will be given to the Church 
of which you are the spiritual head." One glance at 
Poland and another at the swarms of exiled bishops, 
priests, and Catholics in Siberia will suffice to show 
that it were better for Alexander 11. to speak less of 
the fundamental laws of his empire and to think more 
of the fundamental law of eternal justice, which no 
potentate has ever disregarded Avith impunity. 

Let us turn from this sad spectacle of duplicity to 
more consohng subjects. One of the first objects to 
Avhich Leo XIIL turned his attention was the per- 
fecting of a great work that had been begun by Pius 
IX. This was the restoration of the hierarchy in 
Scotland, in the hope that the true faith would then 
take deeper root and flourish with greater luxuri- 
ance, as had been the case when the hierarchy was 
estabhshed in England. 

The Apostolic letters on this subject bear the date 
of March 4th, 1878, and their tenor is as follows : 

LEO, BISHOP, SERVANT OF THE SERVANTS OF GOD, 
FOR A PERPETUAL REMEMBRANCE. 

From the highest summit of the apostolic office, 
to which, without any merits of ours, but by the dis- 
position of Providence, we have recently been raised, 
the Roman Pontiffs, our predecessors, never ceased to 
watch, as from a mountain-top, in order that they 



I 

I^B LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 279 

• might perceive what, as years rolled on, would be 
timost conducive to the prosperity, dignity, and sta- 
e ability of all the churches. Hence, as far as was given 
11 1 them, they were exceedingly solicitous not only to 
e jerect Episcopal Sees in every land, but also to recall 
to life such as had through evil times ceased to exist. 
.For, since the Holy Ghost has placed bishops to rule 
the Church of God, wherever the state of religion 
[allows the ordinary Episcopal government to be either 
;established or restored, it certainly is not lawful to 
deprive the Church of the benefits which naturally 
flow from this divinely established institution. 

Wherefore our immediate predecessor, Pius IX., 
j of sacred memory, whose recent death we all deplore, 
I seeing, even from the beginning of his Pontificate, 
that the missions in the most noble and flourishing 
kingdom of England had made such progress that the 
form of Church government which exists in Catholic 
nations would be beneficial to religion, restored to the 
English their ordinary bishops by an Apostolic letter, 
dated ist October, 1850, beginning Universalis ccclesicE ; 
and, not long after, perceiving that the illustrious re- 
gions of Holland and Brabant could enjoy the same 
salutary dispositions, he there also restored the Epis- 
copal hierarchy by another Apostolic letter, dated 4th 
March, 1853, beginning Ex qua die. The wisdom of 
these measures — to say nothing of the restoration of 
the Patriarchate of Jerusalem — has been amply proved 
by the result which, through the divine grace, has 
fully realized the hopes of this Holy See ; since it is 
evident to all that a great increase was given to the 
Catholic Church in each of those countries through 
the restoration of the Episcopal hierarchy. 

The loving heart of the Pontiff was grieved that 
Scotland could not as yet enjoy the same good for- 



28o LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

tune. And this grief of his paternal heart was in 
creased by his knowledge of the great progress mad(| 
by the Catholic Church in Scotland in past days' 
And, indeed, whoever is even slightly conversant witl 
Church history must have known that the light of th( 
Gospel shone upon the Scots at an early date ; for 
to say nothing of what tradition has handed down o 
more ancient Apostolic missions, it is recounted thai 
towards the end of the fourth century, St. Ninian, 
who, as venerable Bede attests, had been correcth- 
taught the faith and the mysteries of the truth in 
Rome ; and in the fifth century, St. Palladius, a Dea- 
con of the Roman Church, having been invested with 
the sacred mitre, preached the faith of Christ in Scot- 
land ; and that St. Columba, Abbot, who landed there, 
in the sixth century, built a monastery, from which 
many others sprang. And although from the middle 
of the eighth century to the eleventh, historical docu- 
ments concerning the ecclesiastical state of Scotland 
are almost entirely wanting, still it has been handed 
down that there were many bishops in the country, 
although some of them had no fixed Sees. But after 
Malcolm III. came into possession of the sovereign 
power in the year 1057, through his exertions at the 
exhortation of his sainted spouse, Margaret, the 
Christian religion, which, either through the inroads 
of foreign peoples, or through various political vicis- 
situdes, had suffered heavy losses, began to be re- 
stored and spread ; and the still existing remains of 
churches, monasteries, and religious buildings bear 
witness to the piety of the ancient Scots. But, to 
come more directly to our subject, it is known that, 
in the fifteenth century, the Episcopal Sees had in- 
creased to the number of thirteen, to wit, St. An- 
drews, Glasgow, Dunkeld, Aberdeen, Moray, Bre- 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 28 1 



p:hin, Dumblane, Ross and Caithness, Whithorn and 
Lismore, Sodor or the Isles, and Orkney — all of which 
were immediately subject to the Apostolic See. It 
-S also known — and the Scots are justly proud of the 
'act — that the Roman Pontiffs, taking the kingdom of 
Scotland under their special protection, regarded the 
-ibove-named churches with special favor ; hence, 
^while they themselves acted as Metropolitans of Scot- 
land, they more than once decreed that the liberties 
,and immunities, granted in past times by the Roman 
"Church, mother and teacher of all the Churches, 
^hould be preserved intact ; so that, as was decreed 
|by Honorius III., of holy memory, the Scottish 
Church should be like a favorite daughter, imme- 
j.diately subject to the x\postolic See without any in- 
'termediary. Thus Scotland was without a Metro- 
;politan of its own to the time of Sixtus IV., who, re- 
[flecting on the expense and delays to which the Scots 
Lwere subjected in coming to the Roman metropolis, 
by an ApostoHc letter of the 17th August, 1472, be- 
ginning TriiivipJians Pastor ^^tcrnus, raised the See of 
St. Andrews to be the ^letropolitan and Archiepis- 
^copal See of the whole kingdom, the other Sees being 
.subjected to it as suffragans. In like manner the See 
oi Glasgow was withdraAvn from the ecclesiastical 
province of St. Andrews, by Innocent VIII., in 1491, 
and raised to the dignity of a Metropolitan See, with 
some of the above Sees as suffragans. 

The Scottish Church thus constituted was in a 
flourishing condition, when it was reduced to utter 
ruin by the outbreak of heresy in the sixteenth cen- 
tury. Yet never did the anxious care, solicitude, and 
watchfulness of the Supreme Pontiffs, our predeces- 
sors, fail the Scots that they might persevere strong in 
their faith. For, moved with compassion for that 



282 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTPI. 

people, and seeing the wide havoc wrought by the 
storm, they labored strenuously to succor religion, 
now by sending missionaries of various religious 
Orders, again by Apostolic legations and by every 
kind of assistance. By their care, in this citadel of 
the Catholic world, besides the Urban College, a spe- 
cial college was opened for chosen youths of the Scot- 
tish nation, in which they should be trained in sacred 
knowledge, and prepared for the priesthood, in order 
to exercise the sacred ministry in their native land, 
and to bring spiritual aid to their countrymen. And 
as that beloved portion of the Lord's flock was bereft 
of its pastors, Gregory XV., of happy memory, as 
soon as he had it in his power, sent William, Bishop 
of Chalcedon, with the ample faculties which belong 
to ordinaries, to both England and Scotland, to as- 
sume the pastoral charge of those scattered sheep ; 
as may be seen in the Apostolic letter, beginning 
Ecclesia Rdinajia, dated 23d March, 1623. To restore 
the orthodox faith in the same regions, and to procure 
the salvation of the English and Scots, Urban VIII. 
granted ample faculties to Francis Barberini, Cardi- 
nal of the Holy Roman Church, as is shown by his brief 
Inter gravissimas, dated i8th of May, 1630. To the 
same intent also is another letter of the same pontiff, 
beginning Multa sunt, written to the Queen of France, 
for the purpose of recommending to her good offices 
the faithful and the afflicted Church of those countries. 

Again, in order to provide in the best manner 
possible for the spiritual government of the Scots, 
Pope Innocent XII., in 1694, deputed as his Vicar- 
Apostolic, Thomas Nicholson, Bishop of Perista- 
chium, committing to his care all the kingdom and 
the islands adjacent. And not long after, when one 
Vicar- Apostolic was no longer sufficient for the culti- 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 283 

vation of the whole of the said vineyard of the Lord, 
Benedict XIIL gave the aforesaid bishop a companion, 
in the year 1727. Thus it came to pass that the king- 
dom of Scotland was divided into two Apostolic 
Vicariates, one of which embraced the southern, the 
other the northern portion. But the division which 
had sufficed for the government of the number of 
Catholics then existing was no longer sufficient, when 
through the Lord's blessing their numbers had in- 
creased. Hence this Apostolic See perceived the 
necessity of providing additional help for religion in 
Scotland, by the institution of a third Vicariate. 
Wherefore, Leo XIL, of happy memory, by an Apos- 
tolic Letter of the 13th of February, 1827, beginning 
Quanta Icetitia affecti simus, divided Scotland into three 
districts or Apostolic Vicariates — namely, the Eastern, 
Western, and Northern. It is known to all what a 
rich harvest the zeal of the new bishops and the anx- 
ious care of our Congregation de Propaganda Fide 
have gathered for the Catholic Church in the said 
kingdom. From all this it is evident that this Holy 
See, in its solicitude for all the Churches, has used 
every endeavor to restore the Scottish nation from 
the sad calamities of by-gone days. 

But Pius IX., of happy memory, had exceedingly 
at heart the restoration to its pristine beaut}^ of the 
illustrious Scottish Church. For, the bright example 
of his predecessors urged him, they having, as it 
were, smoothed the way for him to the accomplish- 
ment of this work. Considering, on the one hand, the 
condition of the Catholic religion in Scotland, and the 
daily increasing number of the faithful, of sacred 
workers, churches, missions, and religious houses, as 
well as the sufficiency of temporal means ; and see- 
ing, on the other hand, that the liberty granted by the 



284 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

British Government to Catholics had removed every 
impediment that might have opposed the restoration 
to the Scots of the ordinary rule of bishops by which 
the Catholics of other nations are governed, the said 
pontiff concluded that the establishment of the Epis- 
copal hierarchy in Scotland should not be further de- 
layed. Meanwhile the Vicars- Apostohc themselves, 
and very many of the clergy and laity, men conspic- 
uous by noble birth and virtue, besought him earnestly 
to satisfy their earnest wishes in this matter. This 
humble request was again laid before him when a 
chosen band from every rank in the said region, hav- 
ing at their head our venerable brother, John Strain, 
Bishop of Abila, in partibiis mjidelium, and Vicar- 
Apostolic of the Eastern District, came to this city to 
congratulate him on the fiftieth anniversary of his 
Episcopal consecration. It was then that the said 
Pius IX. referred the matter, as its importance de- 
manded, to the discussion of our venerable brethren 
the Cardinals of the Congregation de Propaganda 
Fide, and their opinion confirmed him more and more 
in the resolution he had formed. But while he was 
rejoicing that he had come to the completion of a 
work so long and ardently wished for, he was called 
away to receive the crown of justice. 

What, therefore, our predecessor was hindered by 
death from bringing to a conclusion, God, plentiful in 
mercy, and glorious in all his works, has enabled us 
to effect, so that we might inaugurate our Pontificate 
with a happy omen. Wherefore, after having ac- 
quired a full knowledge of the entire matter, we have 
deemed that what had been decreed by the lately 
deceased Pius IX. should be promulgated. There- 
fore, raising up our eyes to the Father of Light, 
from whom comes every good and perfect gift, we 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 285 



have invoked the aid of Divine grace, praying also for 
the help of the Blessed Virgin Mary, conceived with- 
out stain ; of Blessed Joseph, her Spouse and Patron 
of the Universal Church ; of the blessed Apostles, 
Peter and Paul, of Andrew and the other saints whom 
the Scots venerate as patrons, that by their suffrages 
before God they might bring the said matter to a 
prosperous issue. 

In view of these considerations, by an act of our 
own will, with certain knowledge, and in virtue of the 
Apostolic authority which we possess over the whole 
Church, to the greater glory of Almighty God, and 
the exaltation of the Catholic faith, we ordain and de- 
cree that in the kingdom of Scotland, the hierarchy of 
ordinary- bishops, who shall take their titles from the 
Sees which by this our constitution we erect, shall be 
revived, and shall constitute an ecclesiastical pro- 
vince. Moreover, we ordain that, for the present, 
six Sees shall be erected, and are hereby erected, to 
w^it : St. Andrews, with the addition of the title of 
Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dunkeld, Whithorn 
or Galloway, and Argyll and the Isles. 

Recalling to mind the illustrious records of the 
Church of St. i\ndrews, and taking into account the 
present chief city of the said kingdom, and weighing 
other considerations, we have resolved to call forth, 
as it were, from the grave, the said renowned See 
and to raise or restore it, with the addition of the title 
of Edinburgh, to the rank of the metropolitan or archi- 
episcopal dignity which had formerly been granted by 
our predecessor, Sixtus IV., of venerable memory; 
and we assign to it, by virtue of our Apostolic author- 
ity, four of the above-named Sees, namely, Aberdeen, 
Dunkeld, Whithorn or Galloway, i\rgyll and the Isles. 
In regard to the See of Glasgow, considering the 



286 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



antiquity, importance, and nobility of that city, and 
especially the highly flourishing state of religion there- 
in, and the archiepiscopal pre-eminence conferred 
upon it by Innocent VIIL, we have thought it proper 
to give to its bishop the name and insignia of an arch- 
bishop ; in such manner, however, that until it shall 
have been otherwise ordained by us or our successors, 
he shall not receive, beyond the prerogative of the 
name and honor, any right proper to a true archbishop 
and metropolitan. We also ordain that the Arch- 
bishop of Glasgow, so long as he shall be without 
suffragans, shall be present with the other bishops in 
the Provincial Synod of Scotland. 

Now, in the aforesaid Archiepiscopal or Metropol- 
itan See of St. Andrews and Edinburgh shall be in- 
cluded the counties of Edinburgh, Linlithgow, Had- 
dington, Berwick, Selkirk, Peebles, Roxburgh, and 
the southern part of Fife, which lies to the right of 
the river Eden ; also the county of Stirling, except 
the territories of Baldernock and East Kilpatrick. 

In the Archdiocese of Glasgow shall be included the 
counties of Lanark, Renfrew, Dumbarton, the terri- 
tories of Baldernock and East Kilpatrick, situated in 
the county of Stirling, the northern portion of the 
county of Ayr, which is separated from the southern 
portion of the same by the Lugton flowing into the 
river Garnock ; also the islands of Great and Little 
Cumbrae. 

In the Diocese of Aberdeen shall be contained the 
counties of Aberdeen, Kincardine, Banff, Elgin, or 
Moray, Nairn, Ross (except Lewis in the Hebrides), 
Cromarty, Sutherland, Caithness, the Orkney and 
Shetland Islands ; and, finally, that portion of the 
county of Inverness which lies to the north of a 
straight line drawn from the most northerly point of 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 287 



Loch Linnhe to the eastern boundary of the said 
county of Inverness, where the counties of Aberdeen 
and Banff meet. 

In the Diocese of Dunkeld shall be included the 
<:ounties of Perth, Forfar, Clackmannan, Kinross, and 
the northern portion of the county of Fife lying- to 
the left of the river Eden ; also those portions of the 
county of Stirling which are disjoined from it and are 
surrounded by the counties of Perth and Clackman- 
nan. 

The Diocese of Whithorn or Galloway shall contain 
the counties of Dumfries, Kirkcudbright, Wigtown, 
and that portion of Ayr which stretches southwards 
to the left of the Lugton flowing into the river Gar- 
nock. 

Finally, the Diocese of Argyll and the Isles shall 
embrace the county of Argyll, the islands of Bute 
and Arran, the Hebrides, and the southern portion 
of the county of Inverness which stretches from Loch 
Linnhe to the eastern boundary of the said county 
according to the line above described. 

Thus, therefore, in the kingdom of Scotland, be- 
sides the honorary Archbishopric of Glasgow, there 
shall be one only ecclesiastical province, consisting of 
one Archbishop or Metropolitan and four suffragan 
bishops. 

We doubt not that the new prelates, following in 
the footsteps of their predecessors, who, by their vir- 
tues, rendered the Church of Scotland illustrious, will 
use every endeavor to make the name of the Catholic 
religion in their country shine with still greater 
brightness, and to promote the salvation of souls and 
the increase of the Divine worship. We moreover 
reserve it to ourselves and to our successors in the 
Apostolic See, to divide the aforesaid dioceses into 



288 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

others, to increase their number, to change their 
boundaries, and freely execute whatever else may 
seem to us in the Lord most conducive to the propa- 
gation of the orthodox faith. 

And as we see clearly that it will be of great benefit 
to the said churches, we will and ordain that their 
prelates shall never fail to transmit to our Congrega- 
tion de Propaganda Fide, which has hitherto be- 
stowed special care upon the said region, reports 
upon the Sees committed to their care ; and shall in- 
form us through the said congregation of whatever 
they may deem it necessary or useful to decree in 
fulfilment of their pastoral duty, and for the increase 
of their churches. Let them remember, moreover, 
that they are bound to send in this report, as well as 
to visit the tombs of the Holy Apostles every four 
years, as is enacted in the constitution of Sixtus V., of 
sacred memory, dated December 20th, 1585, begin- 
ning Romaniis Pont if ex. In all other matters which 
belong to the pastoral ofhce, the above-named arch- 
bishops and bishops shall enjoy all the rights and 
faculties given to the Catholic bishops of other nations 
by the canons and Apostolic constitutions ; and they 
shall be bound by the same obligations which, through 
the same common and general discipline of the Catho- 
lic Church, bind other bishops. Whatever, therefore, 
may have been in force in the ancient Churches of 
Scotland, or in the subsequent missions by special 
constitutions or privileges or particular customs, now 
that the circumstances are changed, shall no longer 
convey any right or impose any obligation. And, in 
order that no doubt may arise in future on this head, 
we, by*the plenitude of our Apostolic authority, de- 
prive the said special statutes, ordinances, privileges, 
and customs, at however remote or immemorial a 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 289 

time they may have been introduced, and now in 
force, of all power of inducing- any obligation or con- 
veying any right. 

Wherefore it shall be in the power of the Scottish 
prelates to decree whatever is requisite for the exe- 
cution of the common law and whatever is competent 
to the Episcopal authority according to the general 
discipline of the Church. Let them feel assured that 
we shall Avillingly lend them the aid of our Apostolic 
authority in whatever may seem conducive to the in- 
crease of the glory of God's name and the welfare of 
souls. And as an earnest of our good-will towards 
the beloved daughter of the Holy See, the Church of 
Scotland, we declare that these prelates, when they 
shall have been invested with the title and rights of 
ordinary bishops, shall not be deprived of the special 
and more ample faculties which they formerly en- 
joyed as Vicars of the Holy See. For it is not right 
that they should suffer any loss from what, in compli- 
ance with the wishes of the Scottish Catholics, has 
been decreed by us for the greater good of religion in 
their country. And whereas the condition of Scot- 
land is such that means are still wanting for the sup- 
port of the clergy and the various needs of each 
church, Ave have a certain hope that our beloved sons 
in Christ, to whose earnest wish for the restoration of 
the Episcopal hierarchy we have acceded, will con- 
tinue to aid those whom we place over them with 
alms and offerings, to provide for the Episcopal Sees, 
the splendor of the churches and of the divine wor- 
ship, the support of the clergy and the poor, and the 
other needs of the Church. 

And now we turn with most humble prayer to Him 
in whom it hath pleased the Father in the fulness of 
time to restore all things, beseeching Him who has 



290 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



begun the good work to perfect it, confirm it, and 
strengthen it, and to give to all those whose duty it 
is to execute these our decrees, the light and strength 
of heavenly grace, so that the Episcopal hierarchy re- 
stored by us in the kingdom of Scotland may be for 
the greater good of the Catholic rehgion. For this 
end, also, we invoke, as intercessors with our Saviour 
Jesus Christ, His most blessed Mother, the blessed 
Joseph, his reputed father, the blessed Apostles Peter 
and Paul, as also St. Andrew, whom Scotland vene- 
rates with special devotion, and the other saints, 
especially the blessed Margaret, Queen of Scotland, 
that they may look with benign favor upon this 
Church now born again. 

Finally, we decree that this our letter shall never 
be impugned by reason of omission or addition or any 
defect in expressing our intention or any other defect, 
but shall always be valid and obtain effect in all things, 
and shall be inviolably observed ; notwithstanding 
Apostolic edicts and general or special sanctions pub- 
lished in synodal, provincial, and universal councils, 
and the rights and privileges of the ancient Sees of 
Scotland, and of the missions and apostoHc vicariates 
afterwards constituted therein, and of all churches or 
pious institutes, and all things to the contrary what- 
soever. We expressly abrogate all these things in so 
far as they contradict the foregoing, although for 
their abrogation they would require special mention 
or any other particular formality. We decree, more- 
over, that whatever may be done to the contrary, 
knowingly or ignorantly, by any person, in the name 
of any authority whatsoever, shall be null and void. 
We will also that even printed copies of this letter 
when subscribed by a public notary, and confirmed 
by the seal of an ecclesiastical dignitary, shall have 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 29 1 



the same credit as would be given to the expression 
of our will by the exhibition of this diploma itself. 

Let no man, therefore, dare to infringe or rashly 
gainsay this our decree of erection and restoration. 
If any one should presume to attempt this, let him 
know that he shall incur the indignation of Almighty 
God and of His blessed Apostles Peter and Paul. 

Given at Rome at St. Peter's, in the year of the 
Lord's Incarnation one thousand eight hundred and 
seventy-eight, the fourth of the nones of March (4th 
March, 1878), in the first year of our pontificate. 
F. Cardinal Asquini. 
C. Cardinal Sacconi, Pro-Datarius. 

On the 5th of March, the parish priests of Rome, 
with the preachers appointed for the coming Lenten 
sermons in the several churches of the city, were, ac- 
cording to custom, admitted to an audience with the 
Holy Father. They were introduced by the Cardi- 
nal Vicar, Monaco la Valetta. Leo XIII. received 
them in the throne-room, and addressed them in the 
following: memorable w^ords : 

" It is a most agreeable thing for us. My Lord Car- 
dinal, to see gathered around us, to-day, this assembly 
of the pastors of Rome, together with all the preach- 
ers for the approaching season of Lent. Over- 
whelmed as we are, especially during these the first 
days of our Pontificate, by continual thoughts and 
cares, we have little time to gather our ideas together, 
so as to say a few words to you, excellent pastors, 
who are called upon to share the pastoral anxieties 
of the Bishop of Rome, and to you, also, who are 
charged with preaching. 

" Still, we have not wished to allow the present 
opportunity to escape without giving you a few of 
our thoughts* 



292 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



" We will say to you, in the first place, then, that, 
if all the faithful of the world are the objects of our 
paternal solicitude, this beloved flock of Rome in the 
midst of which we live, and which is bound to us by 
so many ties, is, in a measure, especially so. It is one 
of our most fervent prayers and the most ardent 
desire of our heart, that the people of Rome pre- 
serve the old faith pure and entire, that their morals 
may escape corruption, that we may see their love 
for this Holy Apostolic "See, and their docile obedi- 
ence to the laws and instructions they receive from 
it, increase more and more. We know too well that 
in all parts of the world the enemies of the Church 
are trying, by every means, to wrest these inesti- 
mable treasures from the minds and hearts of the 
faithful ; but we also know that they aim, in an es- 
pecial manner, at this city, which is the centre of 
Catholicity, and that every influence is brought to 
bear to lead it to infidelity and immorality. 

" It is, therefore, necessary that you, our be- 
loved pastors, be awake to the exceptional con- 
dition of the times in which we live, and to the 
most fearful dangers to which the faith and morals 
of the Roman people are particularly exposed. It is 
necessary that your zeal increase and multiply in pro- 
portion as these perils increase, and as the eft^orts of 
the enemy are redoubled. If the ministry of pastors 
has been always and everywhere laborious and diffi- 
cult, it is certain that in the times in which we live, 
and within these walls, you will have to call forth all 
your energies in an especial manner, that you fail not 
in the high object of your mission. You must bring 
to it, moreover, and as an indispensable condition, a 
spirit of full and entire sacrifice, that will always lead 
you to place the glory of God and the salvation of 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 293 



souls above every consideration of convenience or 
interest. Rest assured that if you are animated by 
this spirit, you who are the laborers of the mystic 
vine, your apostolic labors will be crowned with price- 
less and abundant fruits. 

The Roman clergy have always given magnificent 
examples of zeal and self-denial that have made them 
the model and admiration of others ; therefore do we 
promise ourselves the most happy and consoling re- 
sults from your labors, persuaded that these will be 
all the greater in proportion as your cares are more as- 
siduous, your sacrifices more generous and more en- 
tire, your zeal more enlightened, your conduct more 
blameless. 

It is now a pleasure to us to address you, heralds 
of the Gospel, who will to-morrow commence to sow 
the good seed of the Divine Word among the faithful. 
Remember that this Word, proclaimed in bygone 
times by the apostles, under the inspiration of the 
Spirit of God, with which they were filled, was strong 
enough to root out of the world the bad weeds of 
false doctrines, to enlighten minds, and to rekindle in 
hearts a sincere love for the good and the beautiful ; 
it sufficed to convert the world and to gain it whole 
and entire to Jesus Christ. This Word can now also 
save the world from the abyss to which it is hasten- 
ing, wash away its stains, and again subject it to 
Jesus Christ. 

" It is, then, indispensably necessary that sacred 
speakers, walking in the footsteps of the apostles, re- 
lying on divine virtue more than on their own 
strength and their persuasive eloquence, preach to the 
faithful Jesus Christ, the mysteries of His life and 
death. His doctrines and His heavenly counsels, the 
Church and her sublime prerogatives, the divine au-- 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



thority of her visible head, her greatness and her 
beneficent influence for the true welfare of nations ; 
they must meet with simple and solid reasoning all 
the most pernicious and most prevalent errors of our 
times, by seeking to penetrate to the very bottom of 
men's hearts, and to inspire them with truth and vir- 
tue. 

" But that all may succeed according to our pray-| 
ers and desires, we invoke upon all pastors of souls, 
and upon all heralds of the Gospel, the abundance of 
heavenly lights and the efficacious aid of divine grace. 
We desire you to find an earnest of these favors and a 
proof of our paternal good-will in the Apostolic Bene- 
diction which from the bottom of our heart we be- 
stow upon all pastors of souls, and upon their flocks, 
upon Lenten preachers, and upon their Apostolic 
labors. 

Benedictio Dei, ' ' etc. 

These are precious words and lessons of more than 
human wisdom, the full understanding and practical 
observance of which would go far to cure the many 
evils under which society is groaning in our times. 

More than a month had elapsed since the election 
of Leo XI IL, and the world was still waiting with 
anxiety for his first official utterance to define his 
course and declare his principles. The world could 
not appreciate the wisdom of this delay ; but its anx- 
iety was relieved at length on the 28th of March, 
when the Holy Father held his first consistory in the 
Vatican, and again, a little later, when the first En- 
cyclical was published to all the bishops of the Church 
in communion with the Holy See. 

The consistory was unusually solemn, as Leo XIIL 
on that occasion resumed all the ceremonial which 
had been discontinued by Pius IX. since the invasion 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 295 



of Rome. Seated on his throne, vested in his ponti- 
fical insignia, with the golden mitre on his head, Leo 
XIII. delivered the following magnificent allocution 
to the assembled cardinals : 

Venerable Brethren : As soon as we were 
called, through your suffrages, in the past month, to 
assume the government of the Universal Church, and 
to hold here on earth the place of the Prince of pas- 
tors, our Lord Jesus Christ, we felt ourselves moved 
by the greatest apprehension and fear, on account of 
the knowledge of our own unworthiness, as well as 
the inadequacy of our strength to bear such a burden, 
which appeared the greater on account of the splendid 
and illustrious fame of our predecessor, Pius IX. 
That great pastor of the flock of Christ, always com- 
bating energetically for truth and justice, and sus- 
taining the great burden of the administration of the 
entire Church, not only rendered this Apostolic chair 
more resplendent by his virtues, but filled the Church 
with love and admiration. And in the same manner 
as he surpassed the whole series of Roman pontiffs in 
the length of his reign, so, may we say, he surpassed 
all in the public testimonials of sympathy and venera- 
tion which he received. On the other hand, our heart 
was filled with sorrow at the sad condition in which 
we find not only human society, but also the Catholic 
Church, and in an especial manner this Apostolic See, 
violently despoiled of its temporal dominions, and so 
reduced as to be completely unable to enjoy its full, 
free, and independent power. 

And although we felt ourselves inclined to refuse 
the great honor offered us, yet with what heart could 
we resist the will of God, so evidently made known 
to us through the harmony of your suffrages, seeking 
only the welfare of the Catholic Church, and succeed- 



296 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

ing SO promptly in completing the election of the new 
pontiff ? For this reason we thought ourselves obliged 
to accept the burden presented to us, in obedience to 
the will of God, in whom we place all our trust, firmly 
hoping that He who has elevated us to so high a po- 
sition will support our weakness. 

Now, venerable brethren, as this is the first time 
that we address you, we declare that nothing shall 
be held more sacred by us, with the aid of divine 
grace, than the inviolable preservation of the Catholic 
faith, the defence of the rights of the Church and the 
Holy Apostolic See, and the promotion of the salva- 
tion of all men. 

For the fufilment of this part of our ministry, we 
confide in your counsel and wisdom, which we trust 
will never be wanting to us, and this we wish you to 
understand, not as a mere compliment, but as a solemn 
declaration of our will. For we bear in mind what is 
narrated in Holy Writ, when Moses, terrified at the 
great weight laid upon him, called together seventy 
of the ancients of Israel, that they might divide with 
him the cares of the government of his people. Hav- 
ing this example before our eyes, now that we are 
called as leader and governor of the whole Christian 
world, we cannot do less than ask help in our fatigues, 
and comfort in our cares, from you who hold in the 
Church of God the same position as the elders of 
Israel. 

Besides, we know that the sacred Scriptures say 
that " there is safety where there is much counsel ;" 
we know that the holy Council of Trent attests that 
the sovereign pontiff should find assistance in the wis- 
dom of the cardinals ; and finally that St. Bernard calls 
the cardinals the assistants and counsellors of the 
goyereign pontiff, We, who for fiye-^ud-twenty years 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 297 

had the good fortune to form a part of the Sacred 
College, bring to this throne not only a heart full of 
affection and sympathy for you, but still more the 
consolation of having, in the exercise of our duties to 
the Church, companions and co-operators in our obli- 
gations, and sharers in our glories and honors. 

Moreover, it is with the greatest pleasure that we 
communicate to you, venerable brethren, the com- 
pletion of a work which was undertaken by our glori- 
ous predecessor, Pius IX., and which had already been 
discussed by those among you who form a part of the 
Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, 
namely, the establishment of the Episcopal hierarchy 
in the illustrious kingdom of Scotland. We, by the 
grace of God, had the consolation of issuing the apos- 
tolic bull for this purpose, on the fourth day of the 
present month. We rejoiced that we were able to 
answer the fervent prayers of those beloved children 
of Jesus Christ, the clergy and faithful of Scotland, 
who have ever shown the greatest devotion towards 
the Catholic Church and the chair of St. Peter, and 
we most firmly hope that this work of the Holy Apos- 
tolic See may be crowned with heavenly fruits, and 
that through the mediation and prayers of the patron 
saints of Scotland, suscipiant monies pacein populo, et 
colles jiistitiam ; her mountains may receive peace and 
her hills justice for her people. 

Finally, venerabh brethren, we doubt not that 
you, united in the same spirit with us, will work un- 
ceasingly for the defence of the holy Apostolic See 
and the increase of the glory of God ; knowing that 
our reward in heaven shall be the same, if our trials 
in the interest of the Church shall have been the same 
on earth. Pray, therefore, humbly with us that God, 
rich in mercies, through the powerful intercession of 



298 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

His Immaculate Mother, of St. Joseph, Patron of the 
Universal Church, the Holy Apostles SS. Peter and 
Paul, may be propitious, and happily direct our minds 
and actions through the days of our pontificate, that 
we may conduct the Bark of Peter, which has been 
confided to us, through the fury of the winds and the 
waves, to the desired port of tranquillity and peace. 

His Eminence Cardinal Di Pietro, in the absence of 
his Eminence Cardinal Amat, and in the name of the 
Sacred College of Cardinals, replied as follows : 

Your Holiness, in your great goodness, has ex- 
pressed to us in this allocution your thanks for the 
unity of our votes in raising your sacred person to 
that elevated position of sovereign pontiff of the 
Holy Roman Church, and you have deigned to add 
words of comfort for our Sacred College, from which 
you justly expect help in these turbulent times. 

** Yes, it is indeed true, most Holy Father, that it 
was our suffrages that elevated your worthy person 
to a sublime dignity ; but making use of the words of 
the holy Apostle St. Peter, I will say, God who knoweth 
the hearts gave testimony^ giving unto you the Holy Ghost 
as well as to us. 

** It was through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit 
that we have placed you on ' the lofty tower, ' as St. 
Bernard writes to his dear friend Eugenius when 
raised to the pontificate. In that eminent position in 
which you have all things under your eyes and sub- 
ject to you, you can uproot and destroy, scatter and 
undo, build and plant anew — a difficult task, forsooth ! 
But indeed that view from above requires you to be 
always prepared, and to take no repose, as there is no 
time for repose when you have the general direction 
of the Church. 

' ' A continual solicitude and vigilance are required 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 299 



of him who holds this inheritance, which, although 
great and magnificent in its external appearances, 
consists in reality of the cross and innumerable cares. 

" We could not possibly doubt that your Holiness 
would always continue to have at heart, as you have 
just declared to us, the dignity of our Sacred Col- 
lege, and, in reply to such courteous words, we 
promise that you will always find us prompt and obe- 
dient to give you all possible assistance, so as to ren- 
der less burdensome that great weight which, in res- 
ignation to the Divine will, you have deigned to 
bear ; though we are aware that while our promises 
are a comfort to you, yet they can take but little from 
the greatness of your anxiety. 

" Notwithstanding the burden which you have to 
bear, turn your eyes to heaven, and confide in the 
Divine promise that each one shall receive a reward 
according to his labor. Take courage, then, and con- 
fide in God, and repeat to yourself those words of 
St. Bernard, Si labor terrct, inerces invitat. But be- 
sides the reward which your Holiness expects in 
heaven, receive from my lips, in the name of our 
Sacred College, a wish that you may enjoy even on 
earth tha^ reward which consists in seeing your pon- 
tificate always increase the number of the faithful 
children of the Catholic Church, and that they may 
continue obedient and respectful towards the chair 
of Peter, and bound to the Apostolic See, in the words 
of St. Ambrose, not with the ties of perfidy, but with 
the bonds of faith." 

In the same consistory. Cardinal Camillo di Pietro 
was named Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, 
and several vacant sees were provided with bishops. 
The Holy Father made the customary profession of 
faith and took the oath to observe the apostolic con- 
stitutions. 



300 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

The hall was then thrown open for a ceremony of 
peculiar interest for the Catholics of the new world. 
It was the conferring of the cardinal's hat on the 
Archbishop of New York, John McCloskey, who had 
been declared cardinal by Pius IX., on the 15th of 
March, 1875. 

As the cardinal's hat can only be conferred by the 
Pope in person, this final ceremony was, of course, 
to be delayed until the new cardinal was summoned 
to Rome. Cardinal McCloskey sailed from New 
York, February 9th, two days after the death of 
Pope Pius, arriving in Rome two days after the 
election of Pope Leo. On proceeding to Rome to 
receive the hat at the hands of the Pope, a member 
of the Sacred College wears the short violet robe 
proper to such occasions, exchanging it for a longer 
one of the same color when he pays his formal visit to 
the Pope. Thereafter, according to the strict eti- 
quette of the Vatican, he should not appear in public 
till the day appointed for the consistory, when he 
proceeds in a carriage with all possible pomp to the 
Vatican, and in the Sistine Chapel awaits the assem- 
bhng of the Sacred College. Meanwhile, the cardinals 
enter the great hall of the consistory ; and at a given 
signal two cardinal-deacons, after kissing the Pope's 
hand, proceed to the chapel, whence they conduct the 
new cardinal to the presence of the pontiff. Thrice the 
cardinal makes a profound reverence to the Head of 
the Church — once at the threshold, once in the middle 
of the hall, once at the foot of the throne ; then as- 
cending its steps, he kisses the feet of the Pope, who 
also bestows upon him the kiss of peace. He then 
embraces all the other members of the Sacred Col- 
lege. 

Now, while the Te Deum is chanted, the cardinals 




CARDINAL MCCLOSKEY. 



Born in Brooklyn, N. Y., March lo, 1810. 
Ordained January 12, 1834. 
Consecrated Bishop, March 10, 1844. 
Transferred to diocese of New York, May 6, 1864. 
Created Cardinal, July 15, 1875. 



Page 301. 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 303 



proceed, two by two, to the Papal Chapel, where they 
pass around the altar with their new comrade. Kneel- 
ing upon the altar steps, the new cardinal is approach- 
ed by the master of ceremonies, who covers his head 
with his capucJion or hood ; when the " Te ergo" is 
reached, the new cardinal prostrates himself on the 
floor, and thus remains till the end of the canticle, and 
of the prayers which are to be recited by the Cardi- 
nal-Dean. He rises, and his hood is thrown back. 
The Dean of the Sacred College, attended by two 
other cardinals and the Cardinal-Camerlengo, receives 
from the new cardinal the oath of office, by which he 
declares that he is ready to shed his blood for the Holy 
Roman Church and the maintenance of the Apostoli- 
cal college to which he belongs ; then the whole com- 
pany return in due order as before to the Consistorial 
Hall. Here the new cardinal kneels before the Pope ; 
the master of ceremonies covers his head with the 
hood, on which the Pope places the red velvet hat, 
pronouncmg at the same time the prescribed prayers. 
The Holy Father then withdraws, and the cardinals 
form a circle about their new brother, w^ho salutes and 
thanks them. At the first consistory the Pope closes 
the mouth of the new cardinal, which ceremony — it is 
merely a ceremony, and does not affect the cardinal's 
status or rights — signifies that he is not to speak with- 
out permission of what he has heard ; at the next the 
Pope opens his mouth, gives him the cardinal's ring 
and confers his title — that of one of the churches of 
Rome, a sort of ecclesiastical fief — upon him. 

The cardinal's hat is of red cloth with a very small 
crown and broad brim. Two ties, each ending in 
five rows of red silk acorns or tassels, three in each 
row, are fastened to the crown and fall on either 
side, being long enough to meet under the wearer's 



304 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



chin. Originally, instead of this fringe each tie had 
but a single tassel, because the hat was then used on 
all solemn occasions. At present the hat is not worn, 
and therefore the fringing may be more elaborate. 
Indeed after the hat has been conferred it is not again 
seen till the cardinal's death, when it is placed upon his 
bier, and, as a rule, suspended in the church above his 
tomb. The red hat of the cardinals is of felt, of the 
same shape as those of simple ecclesiastics. On ordi- 
nary occasions they wear a black hat with a red rib- 
bon, gold-embroidered; The ring given to the cardi- 
nal to consecrate his marriage with the Church is a 
sapphire set in gold. 

Such was the first consistory of the new Pope, and 
the Catholic world rejoiced to see Pius IX. live 
again in the noble and fearless words and acts of his 
successor. This joy on the part of the loyal sons of 
the Church was enhanced, whilst the hate and fear of 
its enemies were stirred up afresh, by the first Ency- 
clical published by Leo XIIL, Avhich is too important 
to be omitted or even abridged. We give it entire : 

TO THE VENERABLE BROTHERS, ALL THE PATRI- 
ARCHS, PRIMATES, ARCHBISHOPS AND BISHOPS, 
HOLDING GRACE AND COMMUNION WITH THE 
APOSTOLIC SEE : 

POPE LEO XIIL 

Venerable Brothers : Health and Apostolic Benediction. 

As soon as, through the inscrutable counsel of God, 
we were raised, though unworthy, to the summit of 
the Apostolic dignity, we immediately felt ourselves 
impelled with the desire and almost the necessity of 
addressing you by letter, not only to express to 3^ou 
pur sentiments of sincere love, but also, by the office 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 305 



divinely entrusted to us, to strengthen you, who are 
called to a part of our solicitude, to sustain with us 
the struggle of these times for the Church of God and 
for the salvation of souls. 

For from the very beginning of our pontificate the 
sad spectacle presented itself to us of the evils with 
which the human race is everywhere oppressed ; this 
widespread subversion of the supreme truths upon 
which, as foundations, human society rests ; this 
insubordination of minds, impatient of all legitimate 
authority ; this perpetual cause of discords, whence 
intestine struggles, cruel and bloody wars spring ; the 
contempt of the laws which regulate morals and 
defend justice ; the insatiable cupidity of transient 
goods and the utter forgetfulness of eternal things, 
even to that mad fury in which many hesitate not to 
lay violent hands upon themselves ; the thriftless 
administration, the squandering of the public moneys, 
and the impudence of those who, when most guilty, 
give out that they are the vindicators of country, of 
liberty, and of every right ; finally, that deadly poison 
which works itself into the very vitals of human 
society, never allows it to be quiet, and presages for 
it new revolutions with calamitous results. 

We are convinced that the cause of these evils 
lies principally in the rejection of the august authority 
of the Church, which presides over the human race 
in the name of God, and is the safeguard of all legiti- 
mate authority. The enemies of public order, know- 
ing this full well, thought that nothing was more con- 
ducive to uproot the foundations of societ}' than to 
attack the Church of God pertinaciously, and by foul 
calumnies bring her into odium and disrepute, as if 
she were the enemy of real civilization, and destroy 
the supreme power of the Roman Pontiff, the cham- 



306 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

pion of the unchangeable principles of eternal justice. 
Hence have come those laws destructive of the 
divine constitution of the Church, which we grieve 
to see enacted in many countries ; hence emanated 
contempt for Episcopal power, impediments to the 
exercise of the ecclesiastical ministry, the dissolution 
of the religious corporations, and the confiscation of 
the goods with which the ministers of the Church and 
the poor were supported ; hence public institutions 
consecrated to charity were taken from the salutary 
administration of the Church ; hence sprang that 
license to teach and print every iniquity, while, on 
the other hand, the right of the Church to instruct 
and educate youth is violated and trampled under 
foot. 

This too is the end and object of the usurpation of 
the civil principality which Divine Providence gave 
to the Bishop of Rome many centuries ago, that he 
might use freely the power given by Christ for the 
salvation of souls. 

We have called to mind this sad accumulation of 
evils, venerable brothers, not with a view of increas- 
ing your grief, which this most wretched condition of 
things of itself produces in you, but because we know 
that thus you will clearly see how serious is the situa- 
tion of affairs which calls for our zealous solicitude, 
and how assiduously we must labor to defend and 
vindicate to the best of our power the Church of God 
and the dignity of this Apostolic See, charged with so 
many calumnies. 

It is evident, venerable brothers, that human civil- 
ization lacks a solid foundation, unless it rests upon 
the eternal principles of truth and the unchangeable 
laws of justice, and unless sincere love binds the wills 
of men together and governs their mutual relations. 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 307 

Now, who can deny that it is the Church that, by 
preaching the gospel to the nations, brought the light 
of truth among barbarous and superstitious people, 
and moved them to recognize the Divine Author of 
things and to respect themselves ; that, by abolishing 
slavery, recalled men to the pristine dignity of their 
noble nature ; by unfurling the banner of redemption 
in every cUme of the earth, by introducing or pro- 
tecting the arts, by founding excellent institutions of 
charity which provide for every misery, cultivated 
the human race everywhere, raised it from its degra- 
dation, and brought it to a hfe becoming the dignity 
and the destinies of man ? And if any one of sound 
intelligence will compare this age in which we Uve, so 
hostile to religion and the Church of Christ, with those 
happy times when the Church was regarded by nations 
as a mother, he will clearly perceive that this our age, 
full of disorders and revolutions, is going rapidly to 
ruin ; whereas those ages advanced in the excellence 
of their institutions, in tranquiUity of Hfe, in wealth 
and prosperity, in proportion as the people were more 
subject to the authority and laws of the Church. And 
if the many benefits which we have cited, effected by 
the ministry and salutary assistance of the Church, 
are the real works and glories of civilization, the 
Church, so far from abhorring and repudiating it, 
rather makes it her glory to be its nourisher, teacher, 
and mother. 

But that kind of civilization which is opposed to 
the holy doctrines and laws of the Church is only a 
shadow of civilization, an empty name without reality, 
as appears from the example of those people upon 
whom the Hght of the Gospel has not shone, and in 
whose life a ghmmer of civilization is to be seen, but 
its real and sohd benefits do not exist. That cer- 



3o8 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



tainly is not to be regarded as the perfection of civ- 
ilization which contemns legitimate authority, nor is 
that to be reputed as liberty which basely and mis- 
erably thrives on the unrestrained propagation of 
errors, on the free indulgence of every wicked de- 
sire, on the impunity of crimes and offences, on the 
oppression of good citizens of every class. For since 
such things are false, wicked, and absurd, they cer- 
tainly cannot render the human family prosperous, 
for sin maketh nations miserable (Pro v. 14 : 34), for 
when the mind and heart are corrupt, they drag men 
down into every misfortune, disturb all order, and 
destroy the peace of nations. 

Moreover, considering what has been done by the 
Roman See, what can be more unjust than to deny 
the eminent services rendered by the Bishops of 
Rome to the cause of society ? Certainly our prede- 
cessors, in order to provide for the good of the peo- 
ple, never hesitated to undertake struggles of every 
kind, to perform great labors and expose themselves 
to serious difficulties ; and, with their eyes fixed upon 
heaven, they neither quailed before the threats of the 
wicked, nor suffered themselves to be led astray from 
their duty by flattery or promises. It was this Apos- 
tolic See that gathered up and united the remnants of 
ancient society ; it was the torch to shed light on the 
civilization of Christian times ; it was the anchor of 
safety in those violent tempests by which the human 
race was tossed about ; it was the sacred bond of con- 
cord which united nations of diverse customs to- 
gether ; finally, it was the common centre whence all 
men derived, together with the doctrines of religion, 
encouragement and counsels to peace. It is the 
glory of the sovereign pontiffs that they ever threw 
themselves into the breach, that human society 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 309 



might not sink back into ancient superstition and bar- 
barism. 

Oh, that this salutary authority had never been 
neglected or repudiated ! Certainly the civil power 
would never have lost that august and sacred glory 
which it received from religion, and which alone ren- 
dered obedience noble and worthy of man ; nor would 
so many seditions and wars have raged, which ren- 
dered the earth desolate with calamities and slaughter ; 
nor would once flourishing kingdoms, now fallen from 
the height of prosperity, be oppressed with the weight 
of misfortune. A signal proof of this are the people 
of the East, who, having burst asunder the bonds 
which joined them to this Apostolic See, have lost the 
splendor of their former greatness, the glory of the 
sciences and arts, and the dignity of their empire. 

But the distinguished benefits, which the illustri- 
ous monuments of every age declare to have been 
bestowed by the Apostolic See upon every clime of 
the earth, were particularly experienced by this land 
of Italy, which, being nearer to the source, received 
more abundant blessings. For to the Roman pontiffs 
Italy is indebted for the glory and greatness in which 
she surpassed other nations. Their paternal authority 
and solicitude often protected her from the assaults 
of her enemies, and brought her assistance, that the 
Catholic faith might always be preserved entire in the 
hearts of the Italians. 

These services of our predecessors, to pass over 
many others, are recorded in the history of St. Leo 
the Great, of Alexander III., Innocent III., St. Pius 
v., Leo X., and other pontiffs, by whose Zealand pro- 
tection Italy escaped from the utter ruin threatened by 
the barbarians, retained the old faith incorrupt, and 
amid the darkness and degradation of an uncultured 



3IO LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

age nourished and maintained the light of science and 
the splendor of the arts. This fair city, the seat of 
the pontiffs, bears witness to these benefits, of which 
it received so great a share, becoming not only the 
fortified citadel of faith, but also the asylum and home 
of the fine arts and of learning, which have won for 
her the admiration and respect of the whole world. 
And as the greatness of these things is consigned 
to eternal remembrance in history, it will easily be 
understood that nothing but base calumny and malice 
could have published, by word of mouth and in print, 
that the Apostolic See is a hindrance to the civiliza- 
tion and happiness of the people of Italy. 

If, then, all the hopes of Italy and of the whole 
world repose in that useful and salutary power, which 
is the authority of the Apostolic See, and in that bond 
which unites all the faithful with the Roman pontiff, 
we can deem nothing more important than to preserve 
the dignity of the Chair of St. Peter entire, and to 
render more intimate the union of the members with 
the Head, of the children with the Father. 

Wherefore, in the first place, that we may assert 
to the best of our power the rights and liberty of this 
Holy See, we shall never cease to contend for the 
obedience due to our authority, for the removal of the 
obstacles which hinder the full liberty of our min- 
istry, and for our restoration to that condition in 
which the counsels of the Divine Wisdom first placed 
the Roman bishops. We are not moved, venerable 
brothers, to demand this restoration by ambition or 
the desire of dominion ; but by our office, and by the 
religious oaths which bind us ; and because this prin- 
cipality is necessary to preserve the full liberty of the 
spiritual power, and it is most clear that in the ques- 
tion of the temporal principality of the Apostolic See, 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 311 

j the cause of the public good and the safety of society 
' are involved. Hence we cannot omit, because of our 
office, by which we are bound to defend the rights of 
the Holy Church, to renew and confirm by these our 
^ letters all the declarations and protests which our pre- 
decessor of holy memory, Pius IX., published and reit- 
erated against the occupation of his civil principality, 
and against the violation of the rights of the Roman 
Church. At the same time, we turn our discourse to 
the princes and supreme rulers of the nations, and we 
adjure them again and again, by the august name of 
the Most High God, not to reject the assistance of the 
Church offered to them in such a critical time, but to 
gather in a friendly manner around this centre of au- 
thority and safety, and be united more inseparably 
with it in the bonds of sincere love and obedience. 
God grant that they may recognize the truth of what 
we have said, and may know that the teaching of 
Christ, as St. Augustine says, if it be observed, will be 
very salutary to the Republic ; and that in the preserva- 
tion of the Church and in obedience to her their own 
prosperity and peace are included. Let them turn 
their thoughts and cares to removing the evils which 
afflict the. Church and her visible Head, so that the 
people over whom they preside, entering upon the 
way of justice and peace, may enjoy a happy era of 
prosperity and glory. 

And finally, that the harmony between the entire 
Catholic flock and the supreme pastor may be more 
lasting, we appeal to you with particular affection, 
venerable brothers, and we warmly exhort you in 
your sacerdotal zeal and pastoral vigilance to in- 
flame with the love of religion the faithful entrusted 
to you, that they may cleave more closely to this 
chair of truth and justice, and receive all its doctrines 



312 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



with the full assent of their mind and will ; rejecting 
all opinions which they know to be opposed to the 
teaching of the Church. The Roman pontiffs, our 
predecessors, and especially Pius IX., of holy mem- 
ory, in the (Ecumenical Council of the Vatican espe- 
cially, mindful of the words of St. Paul, Beware, lest 
any 7nan cheat you by philosophy and vain deceit, according 
to the tradition of men, according to the elements of the 
world, a7td not accordiftg to Christ, never neglected, 
when it was necessary, to condemn current errors and 
brand them with the Apostolic censure. Following 
in the footsteps of our predecessors, we confirm and 
reiterate all these condemnations, and at the same 
time we earnestly beg the Father of lights that all the 
faithful, united with us in the same sentiments, may 
think and speak in accord with us. But it is your 
duty, venerable brothers, to use sedulous care that 
the seed of heavenly doctrines be scattered widely 
through the vineyard of the Lord, and that the teach- 
ings of the Catholic faith be early instilled into the 
minds of the faithful, strike deep root there, and be 
preserved incorrupt from the contagion of error. 
The more earnestly the enemies of religion try to in- 
stil into the unwary and especially into youth those 
things which becloud the mind and corrupt morals, 
the greater should be your efforts to obtain not only 
a solid method of education, but also to make the 
teaching itself agreeable to the Catholic faith, particu- 
larly in philosophy, upon which the right study of the 
other sciences depends, and which, far from destroy- 
ing revelation, rather rejoices to point out the way to 
it, and defends it against those who attack it, as the 
great Augustine, the Angelic Doctor, and other teach- 
ers of Christian wisdom prove by their example and 
writings. 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 313 

Moreover, it is necessary that the proper training 
of youth to insure the true faith and good morals, 
should begin with the earliest years in the family it- 
self, which, being miserably disturbed in these our 
times, can be restored to its dignity onl}^ by those 
laws according to which it was instituted in the 
Church by its Divine Author. He raised the con- 
tract of marriage, by which He wished to signify His 
own union with the Church, to the dignity of a sacra- 
ment, and thus not only sanctified that union, but also 
prepared both for parents and children the most effi- 
cacious aids, by which, through the observance of 
their mutual duties, they may more easily obtain tem- 
poral and eternal happiness. But when impious laws, 
setting aside the sanctity of this great sacrament, re- 
duced it to the level of civil contracts, the conse- 
quence was that, the dignity of Christian union being 
violated, citizens live in legal concubinage, instead of 
legitimate union, and neglect the duties of mutual 
faith ; children refuse obedience to parents, the bonds 
of domestic love are loosened, and, to the destruction 
of public morals, foolish love is often succeeded by 
pernicious and disastrous separations. These wretch- 
ed and deplorable facts cannot, venerable brothers, 
but arouse your zeal, and move you to admonish the 
faithful entrusted to your vigilance, that they may 
observe the doctrines which concern Christian mar= 
riage, and obey the laws by which the Church regUr 
lates the duties of parents and children. 

It is thus that you will bring about a desirable re^ 
form in the morals and manner of life of individual 
men ; for as from a corrupt root bad fruit cannot fail 
to spring, so the poison which depraves the family 
produces vice in individual citizens. On the con^ 
trary, when the faniily circle is regulated by the ruleg 



314 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



of a Christian life,- the individual members begin by 
degrees to love religion and piety, to abhor false and 
pernicious doctrines, follow virtue, obe}^ their elders, 
and suppress that selfish interest which enervates and 
enfeebles human nature. For this purpose it will be 
very useful to promote those pious associations which 
have been estabhshed to the great advance of Catholic 
interests especially in this age. 

Great indeed and superior to human strength are 
these things which we • hope and desire, venerable 
brothers ; but since God has made the people of the 
earth capable of being reclaimed, since He has found- 
ed His Church for the salvation of nations, and 
promised to be with her unto the consummation of 
the world, we firmly trust, with your co-operation, 
that the human race, sensible of its many calamities, 
will finally seek salvation and prosperity in submis- 
sion to the Church and the infallible teaching of this 
Apostolic See. 

Meanwhile, venerable brothers, before w^e close, 
we must congratulate you on that admirable union 
and harmony which unite you together and join you 
with this Apostolic See. We deem this perfect union 
not only an impregnable bulwark against the enemy, 
but also a happy omen of better days for the Church ; 
and while it brings great comfort to our weakness, it 
also lifts up our soul, that in the arduous office which 
we have accepted we may sustain every labor and 
every struggle for the Church of God. 

Moreover, these motives of hope and joy Avhich 
we have expressed to you cannot be separated from 
the tokens of love and obedience which, in the begin- 
ning of our pontificate, you, venerable brothers, and, 
together Avith you, many ecclesiastics and laymen, 
have given us, by letters, by offerings, by pilgrim- 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 315 



ages, and by other offices of piety, showing that the 
love which they had felt for our worthy predecessor 
remains so firm, so lasting, and entire, that it wanes 
not even towards the person of so unequal a succes- 
sor. For these splendid testimonies of Catholic piety 
we humbly praise the Lord because He is good and 
merciful, and from the bottom of our heart w^e pub- 
licly profess the sentiments of our gratitude to you, 
venerable brothers, and to all the beloved children 
from whom we received them, while we cherish the 
confidence that in these sad and critical times your 
zeal and affection and those of the faithful will never 
fail us. And we doubt not that these excellent exam- 
ples of filial piety and Christian virtue will avail much, 
and move the most merciful God to look more pro- 
pitiously upon His flock, and grant peace and victory 
to the Church. But as we believe He will give this 
peace and victory more readily if the faithful pray for 
it with constant fervor, we earnestly exhort you, ven- 
erable brothers, to excite the zeal of the faithful to 
ask for it through the intercession of the Immaculate 
Queen of Heaven, of St. Joseph, patron of the 
Church, and of the holy princes of the Apostles, 
Peter and Paul, to whose powerful patronage we 
suppliantly commend our own humble person, all the 
orders of the ecclesiastical hierarchy, and the entire 
flock of the Lord. 

For the rest we pray that these days, on which we 
celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, may be to 
you, venerable brothers, and to all the faithful, blessed 
and full of holy joy, while we beseech the most mer- 
ciful God, through the blood of the Immaculate 
Lamb, by whom the handwriting which was against 
us was erased, to pardon the faults we have commit- 
ted, and remit the punishments we deserve for them. 



3i6 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the charity 
of God, and the coniniunication of the Holy Spirit be with 
you all, venerable brothers ; to all whom, as to all 
our beloved children, the clergy and faithful of your i 
churches, as a pledge of particular benevolence and 
a token of heavenly protection, we most lovingly im- 
part the Apostolic Benediction. 

Given at St. Peter's, Rome, on the solemn day of 
Easter, the 21st of April, in the year 1878, the first 
year of our pontificate. . 

Leo XIII., Pope. 

This noble document, which is as strong in matter 
as it is moderate in form, gives us the complement 
to the celebrated Pastoral Letter of the Cardinal- 
Bishop of Perugia on the subject of the Church and 
civilization, of which mention was made in its proper 
place. The rights of the Holy See to its temporal 
power are held up with all the firmness of him 
whose " Non possumus" will never be forgotten. 
Obedience to the teachings of the sovereign pontiff is 
proclaimed as the true and only safeguard of civiliza- 
tion ; and the religious constitution of the Christian 
family is pointed ^ out as the necessary guardian of 
public morals. Modern ideas are denounced and 
reprobated as a very destruction of both rulers and 
nations. Would that the rulers and nations now 
tossed about in the throes of never-ending revolu- 
tions, instead of devising remedies of their own or 
following the baseless theories of demagogues or 
world-reformers, which can only lead them further 
astray, would listen to the divinely appointed guide, 
and return to the truth which alone can make them 
free ! 

Besides the Encyclical which we have just seen, 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 317 

Leo XIII. has already published several other re- 
•markable documents, one of which we will place here, 
because of its special importance. We owe it to an 
event which caused great grief to the pontiff's heart, 
closing prematurely a career of unusual brilliancy. 
This was the death of Cardinal Alexander Franchi, 
who had been selected by the holy father as his 
Secretary of State. His appointment dated from the 
3d of March, and on the 31st of July following Car- 
dinal Franchi died after a brief and severe illness. 
Leo XIII. then chose Cardinal Lorenzo Nina to the 
vacant post. The appointment was accompanied by 
a brief of the holy father to the new Secretary, 
which has been read with admiration by friend and foe: 

" Our heart received a severe blow and our soul 
was filled with the deepest sorrow at the sudden 
death of Cardinal Alessandro Franchi, our Secretary 
of State. Called, as he was, to so exalted an office by 
the confidence he awakened within us by his uncommon 
gifts of heart and mind and the long service he had 
rendered to the Church, he so fully came up to all 
our expectations in the short time we had him with 
us that his memory will never fade from our mind 
and his name in the future as well as in the past shall 
be held by us in affection and benediction. 

" But, since it has pleased God to visit this trial 
upon us, we bow with submissive soul to the Divine 
counsels, and we now turn our thoughts to the selec- 
tion of a successor. We have fixed our eyes on you, 
Signor Cardinal, whose great experience in the man- 
agement of affairs, whose firmness of purpose, and 
whose spirit of generous sacrifice in behalf of the 
Church are so well known. 

" It seems proper tons, on your entering upon the 
duties of your new career, to address you this letter, 



3l8 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

to open our mind to you on some very important 
points to which you will be called upon, in an espe- 
cial manner, to devote all your care. 

" Already in the first days of our pontificate, from 
the height of the Apostolic See, we cast our eyes upon 
the society of the present day to learn its condition, 
to ascertain its wants, and to consider its remedies. 
And at that time, in the encychcal letter written to all 
our venerable brethren of the episcopate, we de- 
plored the decay of truths, not only of supernatural 
truths taught by faith, but also of natural truths, 
whether practical or speculative ; also the reign of 
the most fatal errors and the most grave danger that 
threatens society from the ever-growing disorders 
into which it is plunged. 

" We have said that the principal cause of so many 
calamities was the separation proclaimed, and the 
apostacy of the society of the present day, from 
Christ and his Church, which alone possesses the vir- 
tue necessary to remedy such evils. By the startling 
light of facts, we have showed that the Church 
founded by Christ to renovate the world, from her 
very first appearance upon the earth began to make 
it feel the great comfort of her superhuman virtue, 
and that in the darkest and most sorrowful days she 
was the only beacon that showed the true way, the 
only refuge that promised tranquillity and salvation. 
Hence it is very easy to infer that if, in those times, 
the Church was able to spread such signal blessings 
throughout the earth, she can most assuredly still do 
so to-day ; that the Church, as every Catholic holds 
as a matter of faith, ever animated by the spirit of 
Jesus Christ, who promised her his infallible aid, was 
constituted the mistress of truth and the guardian of 
^ holy and immaculate law, and as such she still pos- 



i LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 319 

Isesses all the strength necessary to cope with the 
moral and intellectual corruption that poisons society, 
and redeem it to salvation. 

" And since most wily enemies, to make her hated 
and suspected, circulate grave calumnies against her, 
we have, in the first place, endeavored to dispel preju- 
dices and to confound accusations, confident that 
when the people know the Church as she really is in 
her gentleness, they will return from all quarters to 
her bosom. 

" Guided by such intentions as these, we have 
desired to make our voice heard by those who rule 
the destinies of nations, earnestly calling upon them 
not to refuse, in these times when it is so much 
needed, the most solid aid that the Church holds out 
to them ; and urged on by apostolic charity, we have 
also turned to those who are not united to us by the 
bond of the Catholic religion, anxious that their sub- 
jects may enjoy the beneficent influence of that divine 
institution. 

" You are well aware, Signor Cardinal, that, in pur- 
suance of this impulse of our heart, we wrote also to 
the powerful emperor of the illustrious German 
nation, which, on account of the difficult position of 
the Catholics in that country, called for our special 
solicitude. This step on our part, solely inspired by 
the desire of seeing religious peace restored to Ger- 
many, was favorably received by the august emperor, 
and had the happy result of bringing about friendly 
negotiations, in which it was not our intention to ob- 
tain merely a truce, that would leave the door open 
to new conflicts, but to bring about, by the removal of 
all obstacles, a real, solid, and durable peace. The im- 
portance of this object w^as justly estimated by the 
wisdom of those in whose hands the destinies of the 



320 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

empire are placed. We are confident that they will 
extend to us a friendly hand to attain it. The 
Church, without doubt, will be happy to see peace 
restored in that noble nation, but such a result will 
be fortunate also for the empire, which, with Catholic , 
consciences at rest, will find, as in times past, its most ' 
faithful and devoted subjects among the sons of the 
Catholic Church. 

Our paternal vigilance could not allow us to 
forget the East, where grave events in progress are 
preparing a better future for the interests of re- 
ligion. Nothing shall be wanting on the part of the 
Apostolic See to secure this, and we have the hope 
that the illustrious churches of those regions will 
finally arrive at the enjoyment of a fruitful life, and 
shine forth with all their wonted splendor. 

' ' As you will readily see, from these brief hints, 
Signor Cardinal, that since our design is to carry 
the beneficent action of the Church and the Papacy 
into the heart of the society of the present day, 
it is necessary that you also bring to bear all your 
lights and all your energies to this design that God 
has placed in our heart. Moreover, you must give 
all your attention to another point of the highest 
importance — that is, to the very difficult position 
created for the head of the Church in Italy and in 
Rome, since he has been despoiled of his temporal do- 
minion which Providence conferred upon him, so as to 
secure the independence of the spiritual power. We 
will not pause here to reflect that the violation of the 
most sacred rights of the iVpostolic See and of the 
Roman pontiff is fatal even to the well-being and tran- 
quillity of the peoples, who, seeing most sacred and 
ancient rights violated with impunity in the person of 
the vicar of Jesus Christ himself, find all ideas of duty 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 32 1 



and justice destroyed in themselves, respect for laws 
diminished, and the social and civil laws of society 
overthrown. 

" And we desire to call your attention to the fact 
that Catholics in all countries can never be tranquil 
until their chief pontiff, the master of their faith and 
moderator of their consciences, is surrounded by true 
liberty and real independence. We can not, how- 
ever, refrain from observing that this spiritual power, 
which, because of its divine origin and its super- 
human destiny, should exercise a beneficial influence 
in favor of the human race and enjoy the fullest lib- 
erty, is, on the contrary, by the actual condition of 
things, so hampered that the government of the uni- 
versal Church has become most difficult to it. 

" This is well known, and is confirmed by daily 
events. The solemn complaints of our predecessor, 
Pius IX., of holy memory, in his consistorial allocu- 
tion of March 12th, 1877, be repeated by us with 
the same reasons, and with the addition of others no 
less grave, growing out of new obstacles placed in 
the way of the exercise of our supreme power. Most 
assuredly, not only must we lament with our illustri- 
ous predecessor over the suppression of religious 
orders that deprives the pontiff of a powerful aid in 
the congregations in which the most important affairs 
of the Church are discussed, but we have also to 
regret that divine worship has been despoiled of its 
ministers by the law regarding military service, which 
compels all, without distinction, to do military duty ; 
we have to deplore that we and our clergy are de- 
prived of institutions of charity and benevolence 
erected in Rome either by the Roman pontiffs or by 
the Catholic people who placed them under the pro- 
tection of the Church ; also, to the great sorrow of 



322 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



our heart, as father and pastor, we are constrained to 
see, under our very eyes, the progress of heresy in 
the very city of Rome, the centre of the Catholic re- 
ligion, where, with impunity, heterodox temples and 
schools are opened in large numbers, and to witness 
the perversion that results from it, especially among 
a large proportion of young people, to whom is 
offered a godless education ; and, as if all this were a 
trifling matter, they attempt even to render the very 
acts of our spiritual jurisdiction fruitless. 

" It is well known to you, Signor Cardinal, how, 
since the occupation of Rome, in order to pacify as 
much as possible the consciences of Catholics deeply 
interested in the fate of their head, a willingness to 
allow the sovereign pontiff full liberty in the nomina- 
tion of bishops to the different sees of Italy was loudly 
and publicly proclaimed ; but subsequently, under the 
pretext that the act of their canonical institution had- 
not been submitted to the placet of the government, 
the new bishops were refused their revenues, thus en- 
tailing a heavy expense upon the Apostolic See, w^hich 
was compelled to provide for their support, as well 
as a great injury to the souls committed to the care 
of these prelates. 

"The government has also refused to recognize 
acts emanating from their episcopal jurisdiction, such 
as the appointment to parishes and other ecclesiastical 
benefices. And when, to obviate these great evils, 
the Apostolic See permitted the newly-elected bishops 
pf Italy to present their bulls of appointment and in- 
stitution, issued according to the canons, the con- 
dition of the Church did not, on that account, become 
less intolerable. Notwithstanding the presentation, 
the rulers continued to refuse their salaries and to 
ignore the jurisdiction of many bishops. Then, again, 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 323 



those who are allowed to exercise their functions see 
their claims sent from one bureau to another, and sub- 
jected to indefinite delays ; and men, respected for 
their virtues and learning, deemed b}^ the pontiff 
worthy of exercising the highest duties of the ecclesi- 
astical hierarchy, are compelled to submit to all man- 
ner of humiliations, and to be subjected to private 
and minute inspection, as if they were vulgar or sus- 
pected persons. Our venerable brother, chosen by 
us to rule over the Church of Perugia in our name, 
though already charged with the government of an- 
other diocese, where he was lawfully recognized, is 
vainly waiting an answer. Thus it is that, with a 
deplorable astuteness, they take with the left hand 
from the Church that which, for political reasons, 
they pretended to give her with the right. 

" To render the state of things in many dioceses 
of Italy more aggravated, the right of royal patron- 
age has been put forward Avith such exaggerated pre- 
tensions and such odious measures that they not only 
judicially notified our venerable brother, the Arch- 
bishop of Chieti, that his jurisdiction was interdicted, 
but that his appointment was declared null and his 
episcopal character not to be recognized. 

" It is not our intention to stop to show the flimsy 
foundation for any such rights, even in the opinion 
of many minds in the opposite camp. It will be 
enough for us merely to state that the Apostolic See, 
to which is reserved the appointment of bishops, has 
not been in the habit of yielding the right of patron- 
age except to such princes as have deserved well of 
the Church by defending her privileges, favoring her 
extension, and increasing her patrimony ; and those 
who combat it by attacking her rights and usurping 



324 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

her property become, by the very act, by virtue of 
the canons, incapable of exercising it. 

The facts we have here touched upon clearly 
indicate the intention to continue in Italy a system of { 
increasing hostility towards the Church, and likewise 
demonstrate the sort of liberty reserved for her, and 
the kind of respect with which it is proposed to sur- 
round the head of the Catholic Church. 

" Under such deplorable circumstances we are 
not unmindful, Signor Cardinal, of the sacred duties 
imposed upon us by the apostolic ministry, and with 
our eyes fixed on heaven, and with our soul fortified 
by the certain hope of divine assistance, we shall 
study never to fail in our duties. You, who, by 
reason of our confidence in you, are called to share in 
our exalted cares, will bring, like your illustrious pre- 
decessor, to the accomplishment of our designs, the 
concurrence of all your energies, and you may rest 
assured that our co-operation will never be wanting. 

In the meantime, as an earnest of our special 
affection, receive the apostolic benediction, which we 
most heartily bestow upon you. 

" From the Vatican, August 27th, 1878. 

" LEO XIII., Poper 

Here is the language of truth and deep convic- 
tion — language as moderate in its tone as it is power- 
ful in its significance. It is a document that will 
stand in its noble simplicity, and the day will come 
Avhen the rulers of the world will regret that they 
neglected its Avisdom. It will then be felt that the 
revolt of the temporal against the spiritual, of Csesar 
against Pontiff, is a perversion of all order, a loosen- 
ing of all the bonds that hold society together, and 
that its consequences recoil with destructive reaction 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 325 

on its authors. Such is the warning given to the 
world by him to whom God has entrusted the guid- 
ance of nations, and who speaks in sorrow, not in 
anger, at the sad prospect before him of evils that 
threaten those whom he loves. 

It is generally believed that the documents emanat- 
ing from the Vatican during the present reign are the 
productions of the learned Pontiff himself, Avhose emi- 
nent natural gifts, cultivated by a long life of study, 
have given a depth to his thought, a keenness to his 
expression, and an irresistible power to his reasoning 
which rank him among the best scholars of the age. 
We have already seen how earnestly he labored in his 
diocese of Perugia for the elevation of ecclesiastical 
studies to a high standard of excellence, especially by 
a return to the doctrine and method of Aristotle and 
St. Thomas. We shall not be surprised to lind him, 
now that he is placed over the universal Church, 
using his influence and his power for the same noble 
end, and urging on all those who direct seminaries and 
universities the importance of depth and thoroughness 
of philosophical and theological learning, especially in 
these days when so much false science is arrayed 
against the Church. The Academy of St. Thomas, 
which Cardinal Pecci had established at Perugia, has 
been established at Rome by Leo XIIL This was, as 
might have been expected, one of the new Pope's first 
cares. Every opportunity is seized for promoting this 
object. Thus, when the Bishop of Lecce, Mgr. Zola, 
was admitted to an audience, on the i8th September, 
the Holy Father said to him : " I greatly desire to 
see introduced into the seminaries the philosophical 
text-books of Canon Sanseverino. This great scholar, 
the glory of the Neapolitan clergy, labored effi- 
caciously to bring philosophy back to the true and 



326 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

solid form which is that taught by St. Thomas. We 
rejoice that his works are already used in the semi- 
nar}^ of Lecce, and we desire that in all seminaries 
the method and the doctrine of the Angel of the 





CARDINAL LEDOCHOWSKI. 



Schools should be followed. It is to be deeply re- 
gretted that Sanseverino died young, but he has left 
zealous disciples after him to continue his work, such 
as Prisco and Signoriello. " 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTPI. 327 



In all seminaries and schools of ecclesiastical sci- 
ences, immediately subject to the Holy See, the doc- 
I trine of St. Thomas has been made obligatory. A 
memorable audience granted by Leo XIII. to the 
professors of the Gregorian University, better known 
as the Roman College, founded and munificently en- 
dowed by Gregory XIII. , but at present expropriated 
by the Italian government, is thus narrated by the 
Civilta Cattolica : " On Wednesday, November 27th, 
His Holiness Pope Leo XIII. was pleased to admit to 
an audience at the Vatican the professors of the Gre- 
gorian University in the three faculties of theology, 
canon law, and philosophy, whose classes, driven 
from the Roman College, are continued in the Ger- 
manico-Hungarian College. The Rector of the Col- 
lege, Rev. A. Molza, and the Prefect of Studies, 
Rev. Jos. Kleutgen, accompanied the professors to 
the Throne-Room, where the Holy Father met them 
in company with Cardinals Bartolini, Ledochowski, 
and Parocchi. An address was read by the Very 
Rev. V. Cardella, Provincial of Rome, to which the 
Pope made the following eloquent reply in Latin : 

" Most delightful to every cultivated man is the 
remembrance of his youthful days when his mind was 
imbued with letters ; the recollection of that first 
scene of his labors, and of those great and good men 
who devoted themselves with such ardor to his im- 
provement. For this reason your presence here, and 
the words you have spoken, have given us no small 
pleasure, since you recalled the happy days when 
we were a student of the Roman College. With joy 
do we remember the happy tranquillity of those days, 
and the far-seeing and profuse liberality of Leo XII., 
our predecessor, who, for the promotion of literature 
and science, had just then restored the Roman Col- 



328 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

lege to the fathers of the Society of Jesus ; the 
throngs of students, their pubHc displays of learning, 
their disputations on philosophical and theological 
theses, and the profound scholars who presided at 
them, John Curi, John Perrone, Francis Manera, 
Antony Ferrarini, Andrew Carafa, John B. Pianciani, 
and others, by whose learning and kindness we 
profited ; and we now gladly and publicly declare that 
our heart has been ever since so closely bound to the 
great men whom we have named, and to your institu- 
tion, that it has never been, nor ever shall be, es- 
tranged. 

Not less is the pleasure you have caused us by 
the docility and hearty submission with which you 
have responded to our desire in regard to the method 
of teaching the sacred sciences and that of philos- 
ophy. None of you surely can fail to perceive how 
important it has now become to imbue the minds of 
youth, especially of those who are destined to serve 
the Church, with sound and solid learning, to refute 
the numerous and widespread errors by which not 
only supernatural truth is attacked, but even natural 
verities are torn from their very foundations ; to ban- 
ish from the schools a false science which is hostile to 
faith and to reason, and which has usurped an almost 
universal sway ; and to replace it by a science based 
on sound principles, explained in a proper and cor- 
rect method in conformity with faith and revelation. 

''Now this true science, we think, is no other 
than that which, coming from the early fathers of the 
Church, and brought into a complete system by the 
scholastic doctors, especially by the leader of them 
all, the angelic St. Thomas of Aquin, has been ex- 
tolled by general councils and by Roman pontiffs, and 
has been the law of learning- for many centuries in 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 329 

Catholic universities. And as it is our earnest desire 
to restore this science to its ancient glory for the ad- 
vancement and the honor of studies, we could not but 
turn our eyes to the Gregorian University, which, 
thousfh driven from its own and ancient seat, much 
to our grief, and not crowded with the same numbers 
of students as of old, is yet so renowned and so fre- 
quented that it can contribute powerfully to the re- 
storation and advancement of studies which we desire. 

" We have no doubt that you will, according to 
your promise, devote all your energy to this object. 
This is a duty imposed on you by the obedience 
which, by 3'our rule, you vow to the Holy See ; and 
by the constitutions of your society, which decree 
that philosophy and theology shall be taught accord- 
ing to the doctrine and method of St. Thomas. This 
IS further required by the very nature and spirit of 
the Gregorian University ; for, as it receives its stu- 
dents from every country, the salutary stream of hu- 
man and divine wisdom which they will draw here will 
be easily and rapidly diffused over the whole world. 

" With this hope in our heart, we pray God, the 
Father of Lights, in whom and from whom is all wis- 
dom, that he would enlighten your minds and give 
you courage to battle for the truth. As a pledge of 
these divine blessings and an earnest of our special 
favor, we give to you, to your entire society, and to 
all the students in your classes, the apostolic benedic- 
tion. " 

At the close of this discourse the Holy Father per- 
mitted the fathers present to kiss his foot and his 
hand, and conversed with each one of them with 
great kindness, congratulating this one on the learned 
volumes he had published, encouraging another to 
publish other works, and others to persevere in the 



330 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



pursuit of their several studies. Among these fathers 
was the venerable Patrizi, well known for his exeget- 
ical works, who had formerly been the teacher of 
the young Pecci now seated on the throne of St. 
Peter, and whom His Holiness had always held in 
kindly remembrance. When the Pope saw the old 
man approaching, he arose, and, descending from his 
throne, warmly embraced him, remembering the many 
happy days spent at his feet in early youth. What a 
touching lesson this furnishes to our rising generation ! 

From such beginnings in the matter of sound 
Christian education we may anticipate other and per- 
haps more weighty lessons on the same subject, of 
wider bearing and more general usefulness. It can 
not be denied that the serious evils which weigh upon 
the world to-day are mainly the effect of bad educa- 
tion — of education emancipated from the Church, and 
controlled by men who have neither faith in the super- 
natural nor regard for the Author of the natural. 
Our Pontiff knows this but too well, and though he 
may not be sanguine of a speedy return to true prin- 
ciples, he feels it his duty to raise his voice, in season 
and out of season, to warn the nations of their fatal 
mistake. We have already heard him as Cardinal of 
Perugia, and also as Pope in his first encyclical ; we 
shall hear him again in his brief to the Archbishop of 
Cologne, and in the encyclical published on the 28th 
of December, two noble monuments to his wisdom 
and to his zeal for the welfare of misguided men. 
We will give these documents entire, because every 
sentence is full of wisdom and of lessons worthy of 
eternal remembrance. 

The following is the brief to the Archbishop : 
" Venerable Brother, health and apostolic bene- 
diction. 



LIFE OF POFE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 33 1 

" We derived great consolation and pleasure from 
the friendly letter in which you conveyed to us 
your good wishes and auguries of happiness on the 
approach of the solemnity of our Lord's Nativity ; 
for in it was clearly apparent your devotion to our 
person, and your inviolable attachment to this apos- 
tolic see. And these sentiments, while they increase 
our affection for you, redound greatly to your honor, 
and confirm with still stronger proof the perfect and 
reverent obedience paid to us by the flock of the 
Church of Cologne committed to your care. We are 
convinced that it is through a merciful dispensation 
of God, who rules and governs all things, that similar 
signs of affection and devotion have been manifested 
towards us by you and others of our venerable broth- 
ers, the bishops of the Catholic world ; for in the 
present sad condition of affairs, this wonderful unan- 
imity gives us the greatest joy and refreshment, and 
causes us to say from our heart with the apostle, 
' Blessed be God, who comforts us in all our tribula- 
tions. ' And, indeed, as soon as ever, on our exalta- 
tion to the height of this apostoHc throne, we turned 
to address ourselves to all our venerable brethren in 
the episcopate, we found in their replies such an iden- 
tity of thought, of opinion, and almost of words, that 
we not only rejoiced at the marvellous unity which 
flourishes in the Church of God, but had manifest 
proof that the bishops of the whole world are the in- 
terpreters of the sound doctrine which is derived from 
the apostolic see, and that they will be our cheerful 
helpers in our pastoral care and labors. 

" And now this unity in doctrine, in counsel, and 
in action, gives us ground for hope that our de- 
sires will be fulfilled, and that from this fulfilment 
the Church will derive the greatest advantages and 



332 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



civil society also will reap the most abundant fruits. 
For you well know, Venerable Brother, that we 
entertain the most intimate conviction — a conviction 
which we have often expressed and publicly declared 
— that the cause of the dangers which threaten society 
is to be sought principally in the fact that the author- 
ity of the Church is on all sides intercepted, and pre- 
vented from exercising its salutary influence for the 
public good, and that its liberty is so fettered that it 
is scarcely allowed to provide for the private necessi- 
ties and welfare of individuals. And this persuasion 
is generated in our mind not only by the knowledge 
which we have of the nature and powerful influence 
of the Church, but also by unquestionable historical 
proofs from which it is manifest that the condition of 
civil society is then most prosperous when the Church 
enjoys full liberty of action, and that whenever she is 
shackled by restrictions, those principles and doc- 
trines which tend to the fall and dissolution of all 
human society begin to prevail. 

" Since, then, this has been long our settled 
opinion, it was natural that, from the very beginning 
of our Pontificate, we should strive to call back 
princes and people to peace and friendship with the 
Church. And to .you. Venerable Brother, it is cer- 
tainly well known that we have for some time di- 
rected our efforts to the end that the noble nation of 
the Germans may see the end of its dissensions and 
obtain the blessings and fruits of a lasting peace with- 
out injury to the rights of the Church ; and we think 
that you also know that, as far as we are concerned, 
we have neglected no means of arriving at an end so 
noble and so worthy of our solicitude. But whether 
that which we have undertaken and are striving to 
effect will at last be prosperously accomplished He 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 333 

knows from whom comes everything that is good, and 
who has implanted in us so ardent a desire and long- 
ing for peace. 

" But whatever may be the ultimate issue, resign- 
ing ourselves to the divine will, but animated bv the 
same desire, we will persevere in the arduous task 
committed to us, so long as life shall endure. For so 
great a duty can not lawfully be postponed or neg- 
lected, while by the perverted teaching of perfidious 
men, who have thrown off all restraint of law, re- 
ligious, political, and social order, is threatened with 
destruction. We should hold ourselves to be neg- 
lecting the dutv of our apostolic ministry if we did 
not offer to human society, in this most dangerous 
crisis of its existence, the efficacious remedies which 
the Church provides. From this purpose, therefore, 
of saving all, and particularlv your nation, Venerable 
Brother, no obstacles, from whatever quarter they 
may come, will turn us aside. For our heart will 
never be able to rest as long as, to the great loss of 
souls, the pastors of the Church are condemned or 
exiled, the ministry of the priesthood fettered in every 
way, the religious communities and pious congrega- 
tions overthrown and scattered, and all education, 
not even that of the clergv being excepted, with- 
drawn from the authority and watchful care of .the 
bishops. And that this work of salvation undertaken 
by us may be more perfectly and speedily accom- 
plished, we call upon you. Venerable Brother, and 
the illustrious bishops of vour country, to strive to- 
gether with us, with united desires and efforts, that 
the faithful committed to vour charge may show 
themselves mc^-e and more docile to the teachings of 
the Church, and mav more cxactlv observe the pre- 
scriptions of the divine law, so that ' the communica- 



334 LIFE OF rOPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



tion of their faith may be more manifest in the ac- 
knowledgment of every good Avork, which is in them 
in Christ Jesus.' Thence will result that moderation 
and that obedience to laws (not repugnant to the faith 
and duty of a Catholic) by which they will show them- 
selves worthy to receive the blessings of peace and 
to enjoy its happy fruits. 

" But you are perfectly aware, Venerable Bro- 
ther, that our endeavors in so grave a matter will 
be altogether vain, unless we have the blessing and 
help of God ; for ' unless he build the house, they 
labor in vain who build it.' 

' ' Wherefore we must pour forth before him fer- 
vent supplications and prayers, earnestly beseeching 
him to enlighten his Vicar on earth and the bishops ; 
and, since the hearts of kings are in his hand, we 
should implore him to inchne to more gentle counsels 
the illustrious and powerful Emperor of the Germans, 
and the distinguished personages who are his ad- 
visers. 

" Lastly, since the united prayer of many hearts 
offers a kind of violence to the divine goodness, we 
desire that the bishops of Germany should by a com- 
mon exhortation excite the flocks over whom they 
preside to pray that the divine help may be present 
and propitious to our efforts. 

In the meanwhile, as an augury of heavenl)^ gifts, 
and as a pledge of our love, we impart to you. Ven- 
erable Brother, and also to the other bishops of Ger- 
many, and to the faithful entrusted to your vigilance, 
with the deepest affection of heart in the Lord, the 
apostolic benediction. 

" Given at Rome, at St. Peter's, the 24th day of 
December, 1878, in the first year of our Pontificate. 

''LEO PP. XIIL" 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 335 

The encyclical, which we shall now give in full, 
has created a ferment in all the political circles of 
Europe. The leaders of the anti-Christian and anti- 
social parties feel the truth of its utterances, and see 
the end to which their schemes must bring society. 
The mask is torn from their faces, and they stand be- 
fore the Avorld, not, as they pretended, its benefac- 
tors, but, as they are, its worst enemies. May the 
lessons here so paternally and so forcibly conveyed 
be of service to prevent the sad issue of modern infi- 
delity ! 




ENCYCLICAL LETTER OF OUR MOST HOLY FATTIER, 
LEO XIII. 

Venerable Brethren : Health and apostolic bene- 
diction. 

From the commencement of our pontificate, and 
in fulfilment of the duty of our office, we addressed 
you in an Encyclical Letter, to point out that deadly 
poison which is creeping into human society and is 
leading it to ruin. We then also indicated the efh- 



336 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

cacious remedies by means of which society may be re- 
stored, and escape the serious dangers that threaten 
it. But the evils we then deplored have increased 
so rapidly, that we are compelled once more to ad- 
dress you, as though the words of the prophet were 
ringing in our ear : " Cry, cease not ; lift up thy 
voice like a trumpet." 

You understand, venerable brethren, that we 
allude to that sect of men who call themselves by 
various and almost barbarous titles — Socialists, Com- 
munists, and Nihilists — and who, scattered all over 
the world, closely bound together in an unholy 
league, are no longer satisfied with lurking in secret, 
but boldly come forth into the light with the deter- 
mination to uproot the foundation of society. It is 
surely these men that are signified by the words of 
Holy Writ, "who defile the flesh, and despise au- 
thority and blaspheme majesty." They will not 
leave any thing intact that has been wisely decreed b}- 
divine and human laws for the security and honor of 
life. They refuse obedience to the higher powers, 
who hold from God the right to command, and to 
whom, according to the apostle, every soul ought to 
be subject, and they preach the perfect equality of 
all men in every thing that concerns their rights and 
duties. They dishonor the natural union of man and 
woman, sacred even among barbarians, and endeavor 
to relax or even to break asunder that bond which 
chiefly cements domestic society. Seduced by the 
lust of earthly goods, which is " the root of all evil," 
and through the coveting of which " many have 
erred from the faith," they assail the right of prop- 
erty sanctioned by the natural law, and under the 
pretence of supplying the wants of men, and satisfy- 
ing their lawful desires, they aim at making a com- 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 337 

mon spoil of whatever has been legitimately acquired 
by inheritance, by skill, industry, or economy. They 
publish these monstrous doctrines at their meetings, 
they urge them in pamphlets, and spread them far 
and wide by means of the press. The result of this 
is that, within a short time, the majesty and authority 
of kings, which should be revered by all, has been 
rendered so odious to a seditious rabble, that trai- 
tors, breaking loose from all restraint, have more 
than once lifted their hands against the rulers of 
kingdoms. 

These attempts of perfidious men, who threaten 
to undermine civil life and fill all thinking minds Avith 
alarm, had their origin in the poisoned doctrines 
broached long ago, like seeds of corruption, Avhich 
are now producing their destructive fruit. You are 
aware, venerable brethren, that the warfare raised 
against the Church by the reformers in the sixteenth 
century still continues and tends to this end, that by 
the denial of all revelation and the suppression of the 
supernatural order, the reason of man may run riot 
in its own conceits. This error, which unjustly de- 
rives its name from reason, flatters the pride of man, 
loosens the reins to all his passions, and thus it has 
deceived many minds, whilst it has made deep rav- 
ages on civil society. Hence it comes that, by a new 
sort of impiety, unknown to the pagans, states con- 
stitute themselves independently of God or of the 
order which He has established. Public authority is 
declared to derive neither its principle nor its power 
from God, but from the multitude, which, believing 
itself free from all divine sanction, obeys no laws but 
such as its own caprice has dictated. Supernatural 
truth being rejected as contrary to reason, the Cre- 
ator and Redeemer of the human race is ignored 



338 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

and banished from the universities, the lyceums and 
schools, as also from the whole economy of human 
life. The rewards and punishments of a future and 
eternal Hfe are forgotten in the pursuit of present 
pleasure. With these doctrines widely spread, and 
this extreme license of thought and action extended 
everywhere, it is not surprising that men of the low- 
est order, weary of the poverty of their home or of 
their little workshop, should 3^earn to seize upon the 
dwellings and possessions of the rich ; that there re- 
mains neither peace nor tranquillity in private or pub- 
lic life, and that society is brought to the brink of 
destruction. 

The supreme pastors of the Church, on whom 
the duty rests of preserving the flock of the Lord 
from the snares of their enemies, have not neglected 
to point out the danger and to provide for the safety 
of the faithful. Indeed, from the moment that se- 
cret societies began to be formed and to cause the 
evils of which we have just spoken, the Roman 
Pontiffs Clement XII. and Benedict XIV. unveiled 
the iniquitous designs of these sects, and warned the 
faithful of the whole world of the serious evils which 
would result from them. When men who gloried 
in the name of philosophers had asserted for man an 
unlimited independence, and had devised what they 
called a new code of right in opposition to the natu- 
ral and the divine law. Pope Pius Yl. immediately 
raised his voice against these false and wicked doc- 
trines, and with apostolic foresight predicted the 
calamities which would flow from them. And when, 
in spite of this warning, these principles were still 
maintained and even made the basis of public legis- 
lation, Pius VII. and Leo XII, solemnly condemned 
secret societies and again gave warning of the perils 



II 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 339 



that menaced the nations. Lastly, every one remem- 
bers with what authority and firmness our glorious 
predecessor, Pius IX., in his allocutions and ency- 
clicals, combated the projects of these associations, 
especially of the Socialists, who were just then be- 
ginning to appear. 

But to our great grief, those who are charged 
with the care of the public welfare have allowed 
themselves to be blinded by the arts of the wicked or 
intimidated by their threats, whilst they have always 
treated the Church with suspicion and injustice, for- 
getting that the efforts of the sects would have been 
powerless if the teaching of the Catholic Church and 
the authority of the Roman Pontiffs had always been 
duly respected by princes and people ; for it is " the 
Church of the living God, the pillar and ground of 
truth," which teaches the doctrines and principles 
on which society can rest secure, without fear of the 
fatal effects of Socialism. For although the Socialists 
pervert the Gospel to deceive the unwary, and wrest 
it to their own sense, yet in truth there cannot be 
two things more at variance with one another than 
their depraved ideas and the beautiful teachings of 
Christ. "For what participation hath justice with 
injustice, or what fellowship hath light with dark- 
ness ?" They never cease proclaiming that all men 
are equal in all things, and hence kings have no right 
to command them, nor laws any power to bind un- 
less made by themselves and according to their own 
inclinations. But, on the other hand, the Gospel 
teaches that all men are indeed equal, inasmuch as 
all have the same nature, all are called to the sublime 
dignity of children of God, are destined to the same 
end, and will be judged by the same law which will 
decree the punishment or the reward deserved by 



340 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

each one. But an inequality of rights and powers 
emanates from the Author of nature Himself, * * of 
whom all paternity is named in heaven and on earth." 
According to the Catholic doctrine, princes and peo- 
ple are bound together by a mutual relation of 
rights and duties in such a manner that a check is 
laid on the excess of power, and obedience is rendered 
easy, constant, and noble. To the subjects the 
Church constantly repeats the apostle's precept : 
** There is no power but from God ; and the powers 
that are, are ordained of God. Therefore he who 
resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God, 
and they that resist purchase to themselves damna- 
tion." And again, she bids them "be subject of 
necessity, not only for wrath, but also for conscience 
sake;" and to render "to all men their dues, to 
whom tribute, tribute ; to whom custom, custom ; 
to whom fear, fear; to Avhom honor, honor." For 
He who has created and who governs all things has 
wisely ordained that the lowest should depend on the 
middle, and the middle on the highest, that all may 
reach their end. And as even in heaven He has de- 
creed a distinction among the angels, so that some 
are inferior to others, and as in the Church He has 
instituted a diversity of degrees and offices, so that 
not all are apostles, not all are doctors, nor all pas- 
tors ; so too He has established in civil society differ- 
ent orders in dignity, in right and power, so that the 
state, like the Church, might form one body com- 
posed of many members, some more noble than 
others, but all necessary to one another, and all 
laboring for the common good. 

But that princes may use the power vested in 
them "unto edification and not unto destruction," 
the Church appropriately warns them that they too 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 341 

are responsible to the supreme judge, and she ad- 
dresses to them the words of divine wisdom : " Give 
ear, ye that rule the people and that please your- 
selves in multitudes of nations ; for power is given 
you by the Lord, and strength by the Most High, 
who will examine your works and search out your 
thoughts ; for a most severe judgment shall be for 
them that bear rule. For God will not accept any 
man's person, neither will He stand in awe of any 
man's greatness ; for He hath made the little and the 
great, and He hath equally care of all. But a greater 
punishment is ready for the more mighty." If, how- 
ever, at times it happens that public power is exer- 
cised by princes rashly and beyond bound, the Cath- 
olic doctrine does not allow subjects to rebel against 
a ruler by private authority, lest the peaceful order 
be more and more disturbed and society suffer greater 
detriment. And when things have come to such a 
pass that no other hope of safety appears, it teaches 
that a speedy remedy is to be sought from God by 
the merit of Christian forbearance and by fervent 
supplications. But if the ordinances of legislators 
and princes sanction or command what is contrary to 
the divine or the natural law, then the dignity of the 
Christian name, our duty, and the apostolic precept 
proclaim that " we must obey God rather than men." 

This salutary influence which the Church exercises 
over civil society for the maintenance of order in it 
and for its preservation, is felt also in domestic so- 
ciety, which is the foundation of the state. You know, 
venerable brethren, that the constitution of this so- 
ciety has, by virtue of the natural law, its foundation 
in the indissoluble union of the husband and wife, and 
its complement in the mutual rights and duties of 
parents and children, of masters and servants. You 



342 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



know also that this society is totally annihilated by 
the theories of Socialism ; for when the firm bond is 
broken which the religious marriage throws around 
it, the authority of the parent over his offspring and 
the duties of children towards their parents must 
necessarily be relaxed. On the contrary, the mar- 
riage, " honorable in all," which God Himself insti- 
tuted from the beginning for the propagation and per- 
petuity of the race, and which He made indissoluble, 
has become in the teaching of the Church more firm 
and more holy through Christ, who conferred on it 
the dignity of a sacrament, an image of His own 
union with the Church. Hence, according to the 
apostle, "the husband is the head of the wife, as 
Christ is the head of the Church ;" and as the Church 
is subject to Christ, who honors her with a chaste 
and perpetual love, so wives should be subject to 
their husbands, who in return are bound to love their 
wives with a faithful and constant affection. 

The Church likewise regulates the powers of the 
parent and master in such a way as to keep children 
and servants in their duty, and yet not allow those 
powers to be abused. For according to Catholic 
teaching, the authority of parents and masters comes 
to them from the authority of our heavenly Father 
and Master ; and therefore it not only derives from 
Him its origin and its force, but it should also be im- 
bued with the nature and character of that divine 
authority. Hence the apostle exhorts children " to 
obey their parents in the Lord," and " to honor their 
father and their mother, which precept is the first 
that hath a promise." And to parents he says: 
" And you, fathers, provoke not your children to 
anger, but bring them up in the discipline and cor- 
rection of the Lgrd," In like manner, the divine 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 343 

commandment is given by the apostle to servants and 
masters ; the former being told ''to be obedient to 
their masters according to the flesh, as to Christ ; 
serving with a good will, as to the Lord ;" whilst 
the latter are ' ' to forbear threatenings, knowing that 
the Lord of all is in heaven, and that there is no re- 
spect of persons with Him." Now, if all these pre- 
cepts were observed by each of those whom they 
concern, according to the disposition of God's will, 
surely each family would be an image of heaven, and 
the benefits arising from this would not be confined 
within the family circle, but would spread abroad 
over the nations themselves. 

But Catholic wisdom, resting on the principles of 
natural and divine law, has provided for public and 
private tranquillity by those doctrines also which it 
maintains in regard to the ownership and distribu- 
tion of property held for the necessities and conven- 
iences of life. The Socialists denounce the right of 
property as a human invention, repugnant to the 
natural equality of men ; they claim a community of 
goods, and preach that poverty is not to be endured 
with patience, and that the possessions and rights of the 
rich can be lawfully disregarded. But the Church 
more wisely recognizes an inequality among men, of 
different degrees in strength of body and of mind, 
also in the possession of goods, and ordains that the 
right of proprietorship and of dominion, which comes 
from nature itself, is to remain intact and inviolable 
to each one. For she knows that God, the author 
and asserter of all right, has forbidden theft and ra- 
pine in such a manner that it is not allowed even to 
covet another's goods ; and that thieves and robbers, 
as well as adulterers and idolaters, are excluded from 
the kingdom of heaven. But the Church, like a good 



344 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



mother, does not therefore neglect the care of the 
poor or the reUef of their wants. On the contrar}^, 
embracing them with maternal tenderness, and re- 
membering that they bear the person of Christ Him- 
self, who esteems as done to Himself whatever is done 
to one of His little ones, holds them in high honor, 
comforts them in every way, raises up for them, pro- 
tects and defends, asylums and hospitals to receive 
them, to nourish and heal them. She urges the rich, 
by the most pressing commandment, to distribute 
their superfluity among the poor, and threatens them 
with the judgment of God, by which they shall be 
doomed to eternal punishment, if they refuse to re- 
lieve their afflicted brethren. Finally, she consoles 
and rejoices the hearts of the poor, now by present- 
ing to them the example of Jesus Christ, " who, being 
rich, became poor for our sakes ;" and again by re- 
caUing His words by which He declares the poor 
blessed, and bids them hope for the happiness of eter- 
nal life. Who does not see that this is the best means 
of appeasing the long quarrel between the poor and 
the rich ? For the very evidence of circumstances 
and facts shows that, if this means is rejected, one 
of two alternatives must follow : either the greatest 
portion of mankind will be reduced to the ignomini- 
ous condition of slaves, as they were long ago among 
the pagans ; or human society will be agitated by 
continual troubles and desolated by robbery and pil- 
lage, as we have seen even in our own days. 

This being the case, venerable brethren, we on 
whom the government of the Church has now de- 
volved, after having shown, from the first days of our 
pontificate, to princes and peoples tossed about by 
the violence of the tempest, the only harbor where 
they can find a safe refuge, moved to-day by the 



LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. " 345 

extreme peril which threatens, we again raise our 
apostolic voice, and we conjure them, by their desire 
for their own security and that of the common weal, 
that they would listen to the teaching of the Church, 
which has done so much for the welfare of states, 
and would remember that the interests of the state 
and of religion are so united, that every loss inflicted 
on the latter diminishes by so much the submission of 
subjects and the majesty of the ruler. And since they 
know that for the repression of Socialism the Church 
possesses a power which is not to be found either in 
human laws, or in the restraints of magistrates, or the 
arms of soldiery, let them restore to the Church that 
freedom which will enable her to wield her power 
for the common good of human society. 

And do you, venerable brethren, who know the 
origin and the nature of the threatening evils, labor 
with all the energy of your souls to impress the 
Catholic doctrine deeply on the minds of all. Let it 
be your endeavor that all may accustom themselves, 
even from their tenderest years, to cherish a filial 
love for God and reverence for His name ; to yield 
obedience to the majesty of princes and of the laws ; 
to curb their passions, and to observe the order 
which God has established in civil and domestic so- 
ciety. Do all that you can to prevent the children 
of the Church from uniting themselves with that 
abominable sect or to favor it in any manner. Let 
them, on the contrary, by noble deeds and by their 
honorable conduct in all things, show to the world 
how happy society would be if it were entirely com- 
posed of members like them. Lastly, as Socialism 
seeks its disciples chiefly in that class of men who fol- 
low trades or hire their labor, and whose weariness 
of work more easily tempts them with the desire of 
wealth and the hope of possessing it, it will be of 



34^ LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 



great use to encourage those associations of artisans 
and laborers which, founded under the patronage of 
religion, teach their members to be content with their 
lot, to endure their toils, and to lead a calm and tran- 
quil life. 

May our endeavors and yours, venerable brethren, 
be prospered by Him to whom we are in duty bound 
to refer the beginning and the end of every good un- 
dertaking ! The hope of a speedy help is raised within 
us by these very days in which we celebrate the birth 
of our Lord, who gives us also the hope of that salu- 
tary restoration which He, at His birth, brought to a 
world grown old in evils and fallen almost to the 
abyss of misfortune, and promises us the peace which 
He then announced to men by the voice of His angels. 
The arm of the Lord is not shortened so as not to be 
able to save us, nor is His ear become heavy so as not 
to hear. In these sacred days, therefore, we wish 
you, venerable brethren, and the faithful of your 
churches all happiness and joy ; and we fervently im- 
plore of Him who gives all good gifts to men, that 
there may appear anew to us the goodness and hu- 
manity of God our Saviour, who snatches us from the 
power of our enemy and lifts us up to the dignity of 
His children. And that we may more speedily and 
more fully enjoy these blessings, join your prayers to 
ours and add to them the intercession of the Blessed 
Virgin Mary, Immaculate in her origin, of St. Joseph, 
her spouse, and of the holy apostles Peter and Paul, 
in whose assistance we confidently trust. Meanwhile, 
as a pledge of the divine gifts, we impart from the 
depths of our heart the apostolic benediction to you, 
venerable brethren, to your clergy and to all the faith- 
ful people. 

Given at St. Peter's, Rome, 28th December, 1878, 
the first year of our pontificate. Leo PP. XIII. 



4 




LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 349 

Such documents as we have reprinted in this vol- 
ume, and such acts as we have briefly sketched, fill 
up the first year of this already glorious reign ; we 
cannot, however, close our book without the mention 
of the solemn services performed by the Holy Father 
in person or by his order, to commemorate the an- 
niversary of the death of his predecessor, Pius IX. 
These were attended in the Sistine Chapel, in the 
Basilicas of St. Peter, St. John Lateran, and St. Mary 
Major by an immense throng of pious Christians, as 
well as by the cardinals and other dignitaries both of 
Church and State. 

To crown the first year of his pontificate, and to 
implore the divine blessings on the future, Leo XIII., 
in imitation of preceding popes, proclaimed 

A GENERAL JUBILEE 

on the 15th of February, 1879, by a Bull which we 
should insert here but for the fear of extending this 
volume beyond its proper bounds. 

We had hoped to add the creation of new car- 
dinals as a part of the events of this year ; but this 
has been delayed, though not without giving us suf- 
ficient indication of a design which fills many hearts, 
especially in England, Germany, and America, with 
joy and consolation. We refer to the proposed 
elevation of John Henry Newman, D.D., the cele- 
brated English Oratorian, and of Doctor Hergen- 
rother, the learned Professor of Ecclesiastical History 
in the University of Wiirtzburg, to the Cardinalate — 
an honor which both deserve the more as they have 
the less expected or sought it. 

Here we close our rapid sketch of the first year of 
the new Pontificate, We might have brought in other 



350 LIFE OF POPE LEO THE THIRTEENTH. 

subjects, such as the discourse of Leo XIII. to the piK 
grims from persecuted Poland ; the words addressed 
by him to various delegations of Catholic associations, 
to students and seminaries ; to pilgrims from all lands 
who came to render homage to the successor of the 
beloved Pius ; the hopes born of the Kissingen confer- 
ences between Prince Bismarck and the Nuncio of the 
Holy See — hopes which seem to have been already 
blasted by the haughty obstinacy of men who will not 
acknowledge that they . have erred : all these mat- 
ters might have filled the outlines of the sketch. But 
it is hard to speak of present acts and of living actors, 
and we have said enough to prove that the first year 
of Leo's reign is one full of great deeds and of greater 
promise, and to estabhsh the thesis with which we 
set out, that though we may grieve for the death of 
Pius the Great, we have also reason to rejoice that he 
has been succeeded by Leo XIII. 



A New and Important Book! 

THE LIFE 

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Translated and Adapted from the Original of Rev. L. C. Businger, by 
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PICTORIAL 

LIVES OF THE SAINTS, 

WITH REFLECTIONS, FOR EVERY DAY IN THE YEAR. 
with a preface by 

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ST. BRIUGID RECEIVING THE VEIL. 

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